From then to now

Many moons ago, when I was a student at UCL with big hair and unstraightened teeth, I worked evenings at Dillons bookstore on Gower Street. I still remember how sweet Tracey Thorn was when she came to my till with a copy of 'The Satanic Verses' (that dates it for you) and the thrill of making announcements over the PA system ('The store will be closing in fifteen minutes...'). Oh, and the dismay of being on Medical Books in the basement, which meant queues up the stairs and staying late to cash up the millions instead of escaping to the pub. Well, the site is now a Waterstones, a big, beautiful branch filled with staff and customers far better read than I ever was, and I returned yesterday as a Books of the Month author to sign copies of 'Our House' and coo over their displays. It felt good, really good. One of the special days. It also struck me as making the perfect yah boo sucks blog post to my enemies, but I've been wracking my brains and I can't think of a single enemy. So I guess the road from then to now has been smoother than I thought.