Memory man

I really don't have a great memory. This, I reckon, is both a curse and a blessing. On the one hand it's a pain when you have to look something up or work it out again because you've forgotten. But on the other hand, you can enjoy the same book or film again, because you've forgotten most of it.

I used to read a lot until computers came along and took up my spare indoors-time. Now I go through phases of greedy reading, followed by long barren spells mainly taken up with doing logic-based puzzles.

Recently I came across a book I had been reading many years ago. Tom Holt's comedic novel, The Portable Door. I don't know why I bought it, maybe ten years ago, as I have't read any of his books before. Anyway, any bookmark was long gone from it and I couldn't remember how far I had got. So just read from the beginning again, with a little familiarity to start with.

The main character has a mundane job with a strange employer and has been given the task of writing an inventory of the stockroom, which is filled with unusual artefacts.

The page pictured did make me laugh, but it also made me wonder how many people would get half of the references mentioned. (Not sure what the 'dumpy, heavy statuette of a bird was tho') So I can remember some things...

I'll maybe mention later if it's any good.