Honestly that bumpy parking lot comparison is exactly what I tell people who visit the exhibit.

Oh wow, the egg trick! My dad used to do this for big family reunions. He'd crack a whole egg into the grounds, shell and all, then pour boiling water over it in this old enamel pot. The egg would cook and float to the top, and the coffee came out crystal clear. Never tried the salt part though, I just remember the cleanup being a pain because you'd have to fish out this weird eggy coffee blob. But it really did work for making a big batch without any grit.

That part about "hammers the bristles flat" is actually common with metalworking guys. The flattening keeps the bristles from catching on stuff and snapping off, which is why you get way more life out of them. Biggest downside I've heard is you lose some of the aggressive scrubbing power, so it's a trade off depending on what you're cleaning.

Hold on, @simonl86, are we talking about the same startup? Because I remember haydenp95 mentioning they got paid in "exposure" and leftover kombucha from the office fridge. I'd have to see a pay stub to believe that place was handing out anything close to "pretty well." That's like calling a bag of chips a four-course meal just because it was on a nice plate.

Start looking at the little details people leave behind. Last week I watched a guy camp at a big table for four hours, but his water bottle had a company logo from a coworking space a block away. He was literally sitting in a cafe to avoid paying his coworking membership. I actually snapped a photo of his bottle and showed the barista. She laughed and said they deal with that all the time. So maybe part of the problem is people gaming the system, not just needing a workspace. It shifts the blame from the customer to the place that's already being taken advantage of.