Sometimes, you click send thinking it's done, but in reality, the transaction has just started queuing... First, you're competing with a bunch of others in the mempool, and the higher the fee you pay, the more likely it is to be included in a block. During congestion, it's very similar to rush-hour taxi rides: you’re not wrong for not increasing the fare, but you might end up waiting forever, or until it expires and gets returned, and you might think your wallet is stuck.

What's even more annoying is the ordering part. Recently, retail investors have been complaining about MEV and "cutting in line," which isn't without reason: for transactions coming in at the same second, who gets processed first or last isn't always strictly in the order you see. When validators/miners earn more, user experience tends to worsen... Basically, everyone is fighting over those few slots in the block.

I'm feeling pretty cautious now: during congestion, I prefer to do less; if I really need to send, I make sure to check the parameters carefully, avoid reckless approvals, and don't sign unknown contracts casually. Waiting a bit longer is better than risking security just to be faster. Even cats know not to eat strangers' snacks on the ground, and we should be the same.