Voting Station

Jill Price

Please vote to return to collections.

Oddity

The Resume

    (1966- )
    Raised in California
    Nicknames include 'The Human Calendar' and 'The Human Post-It Note'
    Found to have hyperthymestic syndrome, a condition where a person has advanced autobiographical memory
    Aware of her condition since 1978 (as a 12-year-old) and can recall any event in her life from 1980 forward
    Case confirmed by Dr. James McGaugh, neurobiologist from the University of California, Irvine
    Wrote the book 'The Woman Who Can't Forget: The Extraordinary Story of Living with the Most Remarkable Memory Known to Science--A Memoir' (2008)
    Interviewed by Diane Sawyer for ABC's news program '20/20' (May 9, 2008)

Why she might be annoying:

    Until 2008, she didn't want her identity revealed and went by the initials 'AJ.'
    Folks with the condition are also prone to develop OCD and become collectors - in her case she collects dolls.
    She says her life is a split screen, one that lives in the moment and the other like a camera on her shoulder that replays taped events of her life, often uncontrollably.
    Two men who display similar symptoms say the condition doesn't bother them, while she complains it brings her more pain than joy.
    If the day picked to test her memory was not newsworthy or she did nothing special, she'll reply she just 'hung out.'

Why she might not be annoying:

    While several other people claim they have the ability and two men from Wisconsin and Ohio show similar capability, she is the first scientifically documented person with hyperthymesia.
    Since her condition has nothing to do with memory improvement, she has no superior learning skills and was an average student.
    She can recall not just what date a historic event occurred, she can state what day of the week the event took place.
    As part of both a blessing and a curse, she can relive the happiest and saddest moments of her life in vivid detail, over and over.
    She met a man on-line and married him in 2003, but less than two years later, she had a miscarriage and he died from a stroke at age 42.
    Her mother says she is her hero but laments that the saying 'time heals all wounds' doesn't apply to her.

Credit: Scar Tactics


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 13 Votes: 92.31% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 5 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 11 Votes: 36.36% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 70 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 16 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 18 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 17 Votes: 58.82% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 54 Votes: 64.81% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 40 Votes: 45.00% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 37 Votes: 37.84% Annoying