I spent the last week and a half on the "planning cell". That meant that I was working at night preparing the maps and GPS loaders for the next day's missions. The work was moderately interesting but it meant I did not fly during that time. My time on the cell, however, finally ended and I was back in the air yesterday.

I flew a relatively short night mission - about 3 and half hours under goggles. We are starting to get some winter weather here. There was a dust storm and some rain the morning before I flew. Night time temperatures are in the 40s. It is getting into the 70s during the day. The change in weather led to some interesting flying. The air was "soupy". I could see objects on the ground fairly well but all of the haze made it difficult to pick out details or make out the horizon in flight. That is not a big deal since I can use the instruments to determine whether I am level but it takes some getting used to.

Other than the brief flight, there is not much to report. Most days are pretty much like the ones before. Our miniature CHU christmas tree has a few presents under it and the twinkling lights in our little window still great me when I come home each night. Two of my CHU-mates are away for a while so its just me and Floyd. The box we live in is a lot more comfortable with two people than with four.

Thank you all for staying and touch. Enjoy the holiday season.