Today, more books. But these books mostly raise the question: Why did we buy these in the first place?

Box 17: Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023

CONTENTS: More books, but I can’t for the life of me remember why we bought most of these. There are a couple of textbooks, including a photography book that didn’t include the information I really needed in my college photo class — how to wrap an exposed roll of film around those reels you used to develop the film in the darkroom while you were, you know, in the dark. (I know this makes no sense to anyone under a certain age.) The box also has “Garfield: His 9 Lives,” the only “Garfield” book that could be considered even slightly edgy. (By the way, have you seen the “Garfield Minus Garfield” strip? Now that’s edgy.) Some National Lampoon collections. A collection of essays about the Dalai Lama. Trivial Pursuit books, for God’s sake. It’s been years since anybody wanted to play Trivial Pursuit against me, and now I’ve forgotten all that trivia.

DISPOSITION: I’m going to keep a handful of these, but the rest are being recycled, given away or placed in the Little Free Library (that’s where you’ll find “Garfield: HIs 9 Lives”). I’m keeping a book about the making of the movie “The Great Muppet Caper,” because I still love the Muppets. I’m keeping what appears to be the first collection of Dan Piraro’s brilliant “Bizarro” comic panel. (Did you know Piraro hides objects like a slice of pie, an eyeball or a stick of dynamite in each panel? The number over his signature tells readers how many objects are hidden in that day’s cartoon.) I’m keeping a copy of “Work is Hell,” a collection of 1980s cartoons by Matt “The Simpsons” Groening, because they’re still terrific. And I’m keeping that Dalai Lama book, because it seems wrong to toss a book about the Dalai Lama. Let me know if you want it, though.