Started buying cheaper beans and saving the good stuff for when I actually want to sit and enjoy it.

The real issue here is nobody talks about how laptop hinges are designed to fail on purpose. I've got a buddy who works in repair and he says most manufacturers build them with a weak point so after 3-4 years you gotta buy a new machine. So like maybe that guy at the coffee shop was right about the lifting technique but your hinge getting crooked in 2021 was probably gonna happen anyway. The whole center-lift thing feels like a bandaid for bad engineering if you ask me.

Heard a guy on a photo podcast say most loading issues come from people not feeling for that little click on the spool. Easy to overlook when you're just trying to get the film in and go. Hope your next roll turns out clean.

oh man, I've been there. that usually happens when your butter gets too warm during the lamination process. like, if it starts melting into the dough instead of staying in those distinct layers, you lose all that steam power that makes them puff up. also check if your oven is actually hitting the right temp, sometimes they run cold and you don't get that initial blast of heat. make sure your butter is still cold and firm when you're doing those folds, and don't skip the final proof in the fridge before baking. that chill time really helps set everything up right.

Buddy from work flew out same day, wrote a check sight unseen, got the house.