Today I watched the mempool for a while, and it felt just like waiting in line for a trendy taco spot on the weekend: everyone’s clutching their order slips, squeezing at the entrance, while the kitchen (block production) has only that little capacity. The transactions you broadcast first “take their turn” outside; when things get congested, the ones with higher bids are like paying extra to cut the line—getting served first—while those with lower bids can only wait, and may even end up tossed back by the staff when they’re “cold” (failed/expired), after wasting a whole loop for nothing.

Recently, that testnet’s points-and-expectations setup also seems pretty similar: a bunch of people rush in to queue, saying it’s about the experience, but secretly thinking, “Will the mainnet issue tokens?”—and as a result, the chain gets even more crowded. Anyway, what I’m doing now boils down to two words: don’t rush. If you can split it into batches, do so—don’t end up getting stirred in like a “scallion” (a crypto sucker) just to grab something hot right away.