I love technology. I like to do multiple tasks all at the same time on my computer, and am super excited to get my new computer that Geek Boy and Little Mama ordered me for Mother’s Day (it won’t be here for a week). I enjoy making spreadsheets to keep track of things.

I finished the book, and I loved it even though it didn’t teach me how to memorize everything I read. In the end, Foer does not throw out his gadgets in favor of keeping everything stored in his brain. If he trained for an entire year and still embraces technology, I’m not going to feel bad about keeping everything written down.

The main takeaway for me is that our brains are capable of a great deal more than we think they are. It all depends on how much time we are willing to devote to our goals, how much practice we are willing to put in. I can learn Spanish (I guess I just haven’t put enough effort toward this goal in the past). I can be a yogini. I can conduct meaningful research, write a dissertation, get a black belt in karate, read two books a week. The possibilities are endless. What to do first?

The final chapter details Joshua Foer’s big memory championship. I won’t elaborate here – it was entertaining to read, and I was surprised when it made me tear up a little.

He does tell us how to clean out a memory palace (kind of). You just go through each room in your head and mentally “erase” everything you put there. You have to make sure to “walk” through each room several times afterward to make sure they are clear. I haven’t tried it yet – maybe it will be a useful thing to do when my mind is racing and I’m trying to fall asleep at the end of the day.