Hold up, I gotta disagree. A single rock is one thing, but a mountain is a whole system. That road cut shows layers, right? That's different kinds of rock, plus soil, ice, plants, and animals all mixed together. Calling a mountain just a big rock is like calling a forest just a bunch of trees. It misses how all the parts work together over crazy long times. Isn't the whole story more interesting?

Honestly... I've had the opposite happen. Used a 30% fly ash mix on a Phoenix driveway last summer, hotter than that, and it gave me more working time, not less. Maybe the problem was the specific brand of retarder... some just don't play nice with certain admixtures. Could have been a bad batch of cement, too.

Try shaking the basket halfway through cooking. It sounds simple, but it makes sure every side gets direct heat, which is the real key. I learned that the hard way after a few batches of uneven, half-soggy fries.

My glove box gets just as hot as the console, @rivera.christopher. I've had better luck just buying a decent charger that can handle the heat.

That line about getting better flavor from a stick burner is the whole debate. It's like manual vs automatic cars. One gives you total control and the feel of the road, the other just gets you there without the work. Most things these days trade a little bit of the old craft for a lot of convenience. Pellet grills are just the barbecue version of that. You might lose a tiny bit of that smoke flavor, but you gain a whole Saturday back.