A McDonald's sign I saw at Ali Al Salim base in Kuwait.

The extension on the front of this HMMWV is used to set off IEDs prior to the HMMWV actually passing by. These have been used in Iraq for some time, so I don't think I'm giving away any secrets here.

Here's a couple of the Iraqi Army soldiers we had living on our base. Not exactly Western standards, but they tried.

I would love to tell you what this mural says, but I never got it translated. I'm pretty sure it dates back to when the Iraqi Army and Air Force were still under Saddam. It was located in a building on our FOB.

This is the Al Faw palace at Camp Victory in Baghdad. Saddam used to occupy it, but it's now home to MNC-I.

040426-F-7823A-003 A U.S. Army solder from the 1st Infantry Division, LSA (Logistics Support Area) Anaconda, Iraq, scans the area while conducting a patrol on 26 APR 2004. The area is being cleared of threats so the TACPs (Tactical Air Control Party) can call in an air-strike. (cleared for public release) Photo by Staff Sgt Aaron Allmon II

Here's a Styker from the FOB I was on. The 'bird cage' of slats around the vehicle help stop RPG rounds.

During training, we fired our weapons many times. Here I am getting in some practice firing three-round bursts for accuracy.

This is a mosque located on our FOB. No American was alloowed inside - even if you were security (like me) or an American Muslim.

This is a mural I saw on Victory Base Complex in Baghdad. Obviously, it's supposed to show the heroic former Iraqi army. There's a painted-over figure on the left. I'm guessing that was Saddam.

This photo was making the email rounds while I was in Iraq. Reportedly, it was a wolf captured in or around Baghdad. I don't know that wolves are indigenous to Iraq, so it could have come from the zoo.

Iraqi Police having their vehicles checked prior to entry to the base. We trusted the Iraqi Army in our area better than the police.

The FOB I was on was a former Iraqi Air Force base. As a result, we had a couple of these old Mig-21s laying around. The former commander of the base told me the more modern planes were buried - and then dug up for scrap by the locals.

A collection of rocket launchers. Hajji will often set these up, put a rocket in it, set up some sort of timer device, and then leave the area for the rocket to fire at a later time.

That's me flying in a UH60 between bases.

House clearing training.

QWBC, the FOB I was on, was an old Iraqi air force base and there were some of these old, beat fighters still lying around.

In this photo, I'm in the lower right pulling perimeter security during a short halt in training.