@paule53 speaks like someone who's never had to work hard to be smart in the first place though lol.

Oh man @karen_nelson40 you totally nailed it, that little tally sheet felt like solid proof I was actually getting somewhere instead of just going through the motions. It's wild how seeing those numbers stack up turns the whole thing into a game, like each egg is its own tiny victory lap. I started doing the same with a simple notebook and now I almost look forward to marking it off.

Totally agree @fisher.charlie, error correction just feels different when you have to physically erase.

Oh man, the heat and wax trick is a total lifesaver (wish I'd known it before I spent an afternoon crying over a snapped bolt on my old Civic). I used to just buy a six-pack and plan for the worst, thinking brute force and misery was the only way. Now I just laugh at rusted exhausts because I know I've got that paraffin ace up my sleeve.

The guy was DEAD right though. Now I can't unsee it. Every dark sky shot I take I'm pixel peeping like a maniac. Found a whole gradient in my milky way shot from three years ago that I never noticed before. It's ruined me.