Disintegration of the persistence of memory

I had to use chip PIN this morning for a card I can usually use contactless for. I had a moment's fear that the PIN might have escaped my memory but no, it popped into my head even as the muscle memory in my fingers typed it into the keypad.

I think I'm far better at remembering passwords and PINs in my head in my mid fifties than I was in my twenties - which is just as well since I have to remember a four digit PIN code for each credit and debit card I have and for my work passcard to get into the office, not one but two eight digit codes to get into my computer, not to mention those for email accounts, Parentmail, social media etc ...

What I don't understand is, given that I can remember an astonishing variety of PINs and passwords, and am better at memorising slabs of ritual lasting up to four or five pages than I was ten years ago, why is it often so annoyingly difficult to remember where I have put my wallet, keys or mobile phone? 

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