Out of the frying pan for a while

Getting off a windowless cargo plane and seeing something other than Iraq is a difficult feeling to describe. It's fall in heavily forested Central Germany, and the leaves are all kinds of colors not found in places like Tikrit or Samarra. This being Europe, it was gray and rainy -- a welcome change from the usually cloudless desert skies.

I walked off the runway and gazed at the mountains surrounding Ramstein Air Base. I wanted to kiss the ground. After clearing customs, I noticed all kinds of little things as I stared at Western civilization with appreciation and gratitude.

Then I pigged out at the biggest buffet I could find. Life was good.

There is a lot more to say, including a side trip to England and a story on Humvee gunners that is probably rankling some brass at the Pentagon -- unfortunately, my Internet time is short here. Tomorrow I fly to Tokyo via Chicago -- an extra 11 hours or so of flying than necessary, thanks to government regulations that I'm sure somebody somewhere understands. Sometime around Hour 20 of the flight, I'll be ready to strangle that guy. But I guess that's why they came up with free booze on international flights.