I read this article in an old blacksmithing magazine about how the Japanese swordsmiths would judge their steel's readiness by the color of the sparks and the sound it made when they tapped it. They spent years learning to read those tiny differences. Sounds like you figured out that same trick on your own, just with more sparks and worried neighbors. There's something to be said for that old knowledge, even if we stumble into it by accident.

That "or the slab would dust forever" line hit me. Here's something nobody talks about though. Ray was probably right about wet curing being better but he was wrong about the timeframe. It depends on your mix design not some magic number. High water-cement ratio slabs do dust if you don't wet cure them long enough. Low w/c mixes with proper admixtures can get away with almost anything. Ray was using rules from a time when concrete was different.

Wait, you found HIS actual ratchet at a pawn shop? That's wild, it's like the universe was trying to finish that sentence he started in 2019. I had an old machinist tell me to never trust a used torque wrench and now I eyeball every one I see at flea markets with major side-eye. That's a hell of a way to learn a lesson though, finding his tool out there like that.

You ever notice we treat cheap games like they don't deserve our time? I did the same with Terraria for ages, bought it for like $2 and let it rot for three years. Now I've got 200 hours in it and it's easily my most played game on Steam. It really makes you question why we always chase the $60 titles first when these little games have so much more heart. What's the next cheap gem you're gonna finally load up from your backlog?

That's just the universe's way of reminding us that no good deed goes unpunished in this trade. Sounds like all those cars got together for a strategy meeting before your week started.