One guy actually brought a forty-two inch flat screen TV. I contributed my DVD player and a collection of movies for us to watch during our down time ...rom flight operations. The carrier was scheduled to sail Saturday evening. After depositing my gear aboard the ship I went to the BOQ and checked in along with the other members of my squadron. In all the commotion preparing to leave I had little time to think about what had happened to me over the Thanksgiving weekend. My squadron, one of nine,. Aftercoffee and some more chit chat it was late and the boys did have to getgoing. Glenn offered to drive me home and I accepted. He stopped in front of my apartment building, got out and he walked meto the lobby door while Bart waited in the car. A few minutes of nervoussmall talk and he turned to leave, I tugged on his sleeve; he turnedback and I put my arms around his neck, pulled him down to my level andkissed him goodnight."I'll see you tomorrow, won't I?" he said as I pulled my lips. You will be late for your college.”At 9:00 I was in my college trying hard to concentrate on the professor’s lecture but my mind was rolling off to Mrs. Sophie. Those few hours in the college felt like a few decades to me and I started becoming impatient. But, luckily, before the limit of my patience was crossed, the college got over and I was nearly running to the coaching center (which was not very far off from the school).There again I was losing my patience because there were three more. Prior to reaching the Platte, the routes west varied considerably. We would see where other wagon trains had come through, but not in any great number.When the wagons reached the Platte, it was like they were on a natural road, going west. Almost every wagon train heading west took this route. Consequently, we saw a great deal of discarded furniture; broken down wagons; and the remains of dead animals from this point on.This morning, we saw the remains of a dead mule, and an upright piano about.