My old boss at the bakery insisted every manager work one shift a month on the line, kneading and shaping. It stopped us from ordering cheap flour that ruined the texture, because we felt the difference. @jadeg99 has a point about business skills, but if a manager never touches the dough, they won't understand why a baker needs an extra ten minutes for a proper proof. They start seeing labor hours as just a number to cut, not a needed step for quality. That disconnect is what kills a bakery's soul long before the books go red.

Actually find it gets cheaper after the first few tries, once you nail your method. The trick is using really cold water and not blending too long, maybe 30 seconds max. A tiny pinch of salt helps stop separation too. My last batch stayed mixed in the fridge for almost five days.

That slow burn is the whole point though. The first three episodes are building the town's mood and the hidden tensions in every conversation. By episode five, when the mayor's past finally comes out during the harvest festival, every quiet look from the earlier episodes suddenly has weight. You need that setup to make the payoff mean something.

Right there with you, @charlieb21. Those glitches were part of the adventure.

My buddy Mark was the worst for this, he'd be on his phone in bed until 2am. After reading @jennifera82's point about blue light, he decided to try the phone-out-of-room rule. He swapped his nightly scroll for a paperback and said it was like a switch flipped in his brain. Now he falls asleep in minutes and wakes up feeling clear headed, no more morning fog. It's crazy how such a small change made such a big difference for him.