Literally lived on kombini egg sandwiches last trip, saved a ton.

What's the actual worst part for you, the flat taste or just knowing it's not fresh? Is it mostly about the flavor going bad, or does the whole feel of the place change when they do that?

Absolutely! Seeing friends my age already having trouble with simple things really drives it home. My neighbor can't pick up her toddler without her knees hurting because she never stretched after runs. I've started doing five minutes of light stretches before even unloading groceries, and wow what a difference. It feels silly sometimes but future me will be grateful to still bend down for garden weeds without groaning.

Explosions in the kiln are terrifying. @patcoleman's right about the big torch making you a believer. What's your full process for flame annealing now? Do you check for bubbles or cracks before firing? I'm curious if there are specific signs to look for that could prevent another disaster.

Right? Like when do you actually need all that power? Totally with you, @fionaw42. In my experience, setting up a whole fancy system for a five-minute fix is just too much. I once spent an hour making a chart for a task that took ten minutes to do. Your mileage may vary, but for quick jobs, a plain text file or a quick chat works way better. Take this with a grain of salt, but it feels like we're adding steps for no real reason.