Part two of my Pivotal moments thread....

[fitness1]

Memories....

Does anyone else feel like they may remember too much, and too vividly?

I've always had somewhat of a photographic memory, and at reunions folks are always shocked at the things I remember from 20-30-40 years ago. I also have what I've coined as an audio-graphic memory.....I can recall full songs in my head (solos, harmonies, lyrics) just like the original recording/band.

This also comes through in my dreams - they have always been full color, vivid and I wake up remembering most of what went on, and believe me, some of them are extremely detailed.

Some times I feel like there's just plain too much junk in my head. Like David Wilcox said....anyone else??

[RP]

You seem to have a memory like a steel trap - at 70 my memory just steals crap....

[AmericanEagle]

Originally Posted by fitness1

Memories....

Does anyone else feel like they may remember too much, and too vividly?

This also comes through in my dreams - they have always been full color, vivid and I wake up remembering most of what went on, and believe me, some of them are extremely detailed.
]

Yes, this is me. Crazy vivid dreams, and I remember them, like I watched a movie in my sleep. I have also experienced lucid dreams, where, while dreaming, I became aware I am asleep and dreaming, thus I am able to have full control over the dream, and do whatever I want. The most amazing experience!
I also remember minute details of my past, small things others have completely forgotten.

[tbeltrans]

Any of us here who came back from Vietnam, definitely ... yes.

Tony

[ahorsewithnonam]

Fitness. I have the same thing. I remember specific days in kindergarten, 1st grade, etc. I remember things I said or what people said, how I felt. Crazy. It’s almost like if I want, I can recall it.

[Tyeetime]

Originally Posted by AmericanEagle

Yes, this is me. Crazy vivid dreams, and I remember them, like I watched a movie in my sleep. I have also experienced lucid dreams, where, while dreaming, I became aware I am asleep and dreaming, thus I am able to have full control over the dream, and do whatever I want. The most amazing experience!
I also remember minute details of my past, small things others have completely forgotten.

This is my experience as well. I am aware I am dreaming and can make myself do whatever I want in it (fly, have incredible strength etc.)

[AX17609]

I started meditating a lot during the Covid shutdown, and it brought back boatloads of terrible memories. Some expressed themselves as bone chillingly awful nightmares. I had to stop. Sometimes it's better to forget.

[Wengr]

I used to be like that. It's been fading for years now however. I am 56 and it saddens me.

[Mr. Jelly]

I'm the opposite of most of you here. I take on the essence and knowledge of life situations and forget the unimportant details and move on. I don't remember dreams or even remember having dreams most of the time. I never thought of it as a good thing or a bad thing or even a thing. It just is.

[TBman]

I remember the dumbest things from when I was a kid, stupid embarrassing little things that happen to all kids, but because of our family situation at the time I had no one to confide in and that let them be blown out of proportion in my mind at the time which burned them into my memory.

Now that I'm an official old guy and starting to feel like the androids in Blade Runner, I'm beginning to care less about the past, and the future; for what little is left, for that matter as well.

[tinnitus]

I annoy myself a bit from time to time. Why? Because my memory is alarmingly lopsided. Can't recall names of people I should know (clients, co-workers, friends of friends, their spouses and kids, etc.). 2-5 things on a grocery list? Forget it. Combined errands? No dice. What did I come out to get from the shed? A phone number? Too many digits.

But, I recall vividly, to the point of frustrating clutter, the details of odd/insignificant trivia, irrelevant specific events from decades ago, literary quotes, punchlines, looks on peoples' faces, lines from obscure movies, commercial jingles, Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, musicians who played in other bands before they got famous, and on and on. All that random noise and $4 will get me a large coffee somewhere.

But where I believe mental asymmetry has helped me a lot is how I perceive music.

Dots on paper mean nothing to me but I can play by ear. Guitar, bass, drums and some keys. I can hear something on popular radio, size up the chord transitions and pretty well guess/tell you what key it's in. That was a bit of a trick at first in the 60s and 70s until I got my mind around Hendrix tuning to Eb, and George Martin (and countless other producers/engineers) spinning the tape at whatever speeds/pitches worked best for their singers.

Am I amazing like a savant? Absolutely not! Not even close. But when garage bandmates say, "We should play ____!" I can tell you immediately if it's doable (within the reach of the players we have, including myself) - or not. Arrangements are easy. I can't name the notes in any scale beyond Cmaj, but I can totally get the feel/nuance of a song. And I wouldn't have it any other way.