WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17th.

And CPT Patti has been doing the bidding of her country for 220 days.

But today she says she is scheduled to go to Baghdad International Airport , remain overnight and hopefully catch a flight to Kuwait on Thursday. (And if all that works, let me say thanks, about one century after the fact, to Orville and Wilbur...)

Me...I'm trying not to get my hopes up...she is simply on Stand-by after all...

But so far hopes are eluding my best controls...