Lately, the chain has been constantly congested. I’ll make a small transaction, and it basically looks like it’s lining up in the mempool to buy milk tea… To put it plainly, you first toss your little note—“I want to transfer/convert coins”—into the queue. Then the block producers/miners who are packaging transactions prioritize the group that pays higher tips. If you’re stingy with tips, you can only wait, and while you’re waiting, the price might slide away before it even makes it on-chain. Honestly, the most annoying part is thinking you’ve already gotten out, only to find you’re still inching along at the very back of the line.

Anyway, at a time like this, whenever I see some big transfers or when exchange hot and cold wallets move, it gets interpreted as “smart money.” I get tempted too, but I’ve learned to be smarter now: set your limit price and slippage first—so one single “candle” doesn’t end up treating me like a snack.