Huh, I actually see it a little different. I think finding a detail like that can sometimes let us off the hook for judging the character's agency in the moment. For me, the photo explains her sadness but doesn't excuse her pushing everyone away, so the debate stays about her choices.

Notice the same thing plays out everywhere, not just in leveling cabinets. One small mistake at the start of anything - hanging a door, setting up a garden bed, even planning a route on a map - and you end up spending twice the time fixing what should've taken ten minutes. People always want to blame the tool or the material, but most times it's just rushing through the setup that costs you. There's a reason old timers say measure twice and cut once, that half bubble is the same idea. We could all save ourselves a lot of grief if we just slowed down at the front end.

Saying "every 3,000 miles" is a bit off for that trick, it's usually more like every fill up or every other tank. The ATF in the fuel thing is legit though, I've ran it in my old Cummins for years. Just make sure you're not using Type F or any of the newer low viscosity ATFs, stick with Dexron III or even better, a dedicated diesel fuel additive like Stanadyne or Power Service.

Dude I feel like the power stretcher is proof that I'm not as smart as I think I am. Every time I pull it out I spend 20 minutes staring at the poles trying to remember which order they go in and then I gotta watch a YouTube video real quick. But man once you get it set up and you feel that carpet just lock in place, it's like the difference between a handshake and a fist bump. The kicker always leaves me with those little ghost bubbles that show up the next day like I didn't even do anything. And honestly my knees stopped hurting after I switched, so even if I look like a goof setting up the poles, I'll take it.

Yeah I gotta disagree a little here. Lighter fluid on the blades is basically asking for trouble unless you really know what you're doing, that stuff can mess up the lubrication and make things way worse. If you're only $80 in I'd say cut your losses and send it to a pro before you end up with a paperweight.