Greetings from Baghdad. Sorry for the lack of posts. I have been SWAMPED with work, which is actually a good thing because it makes the time go faster.  I've been suffering from a bad case of writer's block, and cabin fever.

It's no picnic working in Iraq these days. You can't walk outside your base. You can't walk down the street to grab lunch or an ice cream. You can't drive around town without an armed escort. My entire world in Baghdad is a 50x50 square meter, heavily-fortified compound. Except for the occasional day trips to the Green Zone for press briefings,  I spend most days cooped up a three-room apartment, with just CNN and my iPod to keep me company. 

The good news is I'm a short-timer. For OPSEC (operational security) reasons, I can't divulge the exact date of departure. But I will soon be flying back to the land of the big PX.

In the meantime, check out the latest Baghdad photos on Flickr. This spectacular photo of a Black Hawk helicopter passing by a golden setting sun was shot from my apartment balcony.  It reminds me of the poster for "Miss Saigon." It was shot with a Canon 30D digital camera with 300mm lens and a bit of post-processing for color correction.  Just wish I had snapped it about a half-second earlier, and used a tripod!

Here's one more parting shot :