My long-term memory is vivid. Sometimes I remember entire swaths of childhood before bed. My short-term memory, especially when I'm rushing around, is terrible. I tend to forget the smallest details, especially errands or obligations. It's out of sight, out of mind. Luckily, I learn quickly and often remember the underlying ideas, the big picture. I seek out the patterns in ideas, the underlying logic, but names, specifics, and so on, are lost on me. Often, though, after practicing something for long enough, even driving to a certain place, I will not need to recall anymore. It will become part of my muscle memory, natural. I do have the ability to immerse myself in a subject, blocking everything else out, so there's no distractions. By painstakingly learning, by obsessing, I pick ideas up pretty quickly. If I lose interest in those ideas, and don't practice them, then I usually forget them. Sometimes, however, after taking a mental break from certain ideas and returning to them again and again, I see them with fresh eyes. My perspective is heightened because I took a break.