Memory Error

I think whatever sector of my brain that was previously used for remembering peoples' names has been overwritten by Japanese kanji. I rarely need to use a kanji dictionary anymore, which certainly makes translating go a whole lot faster, but I can't remember peoples' names. When I was a kid I remembered the name and face of everyone I met, even if I only met them for a brief time. Now if I meet and talk with someone and then don't see them for about 6 months I may or may not recognize their face, but I almost always space out their name. I wonder if anyone else has this problem or if its just a lack of attention on my part.