No he's just an incomplete idiot ;) but that's okay.

I think the fact that Rose attached so much sentimental value to those items makes you as a reader also feel attached to them. I love the fact that it's not just the relationship with John that she misses when he goes, it's also the little things from their life together like the presents he gave her, the sketch he did of her...

Haha, he may have gone back and gotten more stuff or he may not. We know he got the comb and the journal at least... ;)