Learned that lesson after ruining my first seasoning and cried over scrambled eggs for a week.

Oh man, that sounds like a nightmare! I've got to say though, I think you might have the wrong city there. Evanston is in Illinois, but if you're hanging drywall in a basement in Evanston, Wyoming, that'd be a different story. I grew up near Evanston, Illinois, so my brain went right to the one by Chicago. But anyway, that lockup issue is brutal. Did you check if the gear teeth got jammed with a bit of drywall dust or something? I've seen that happen before when people don't wipe down the crank mechanism after cutting boards nearby.

My husband used to brag about how "manly" his dark roast was (eye roll), then I accidentally bought a light roast once and he couldn't finish his first cup because he was bouncing off the walls. He finally looked it up and had the same mind-blown moment you did. Now he won't shut up about how he's "optimizing his caffeine intake" like some kind of coffee scientist.

I mean, Matt from my local supply house actually told me about this trick where you can use a thermal imaging camera on a quick scan during rough-in. Idk why nobody talks about it, but it catches loose connections immediately because they heat up under load. I started renting one for the day on big jobs and it saves me from chasing ghosts later. Maybe it's just me but I feel like the real issue is guys not knowing how to use proper torque screwdrivers on those wire nuts, not just being in a hurry.

I used to think pulling tubes was pretty straightforward, you just yank them out and you're done. But last month I had a similar situation on a condenser and it totally changed how I look at it. The tube got stuck and rolled over on me like a stubborn log. I spent 4 hours with a sawzall and it was a nightmare. Now I always spray a ton of penetrating oil on the tubes the night before, and I use a slow steady pull with a hydraulic puller instead of rushing it. It still takes me a bit longer upfront but it saves me from those 6 hour messes where you lose half your day to a simple job.