But doesn't cutting a notch prevent that exact tension problem?

That Polygon article called it "couch co-op therapy.

Wait, you think that's weird? My grandma's famous meatloaf has a whole packet of dry onion soup mix in it. I found out when I was helping her one year and she just tossed it in like it was nothing. I always thought it was some fancy blend of spices she made. And my dad puts a little bit of cinnamon in his spaghetti sauce, which sounds crazy but it works. Makes you wonder how many of those "old family secrets" are just stuff from the back of the pantry.

But is a tiny air gap really that big of a deal? I've seen guys leave way bigger stuff wrong and it never gets called out. Sometimes the inspector just misses it or doesn't care. Are we overthinking every little step?

Man, that's rough. I keep my pre-dive talk to 30 seconds max, just the big three: gas, weights, and cutting tools. All that extra chatter just gives people time to mess with gear they already checked.