But isn't there a steep learning curve? Heard you need to hold it at a much steeper angle than a safety razor.

My buddy tried that and saw his bill drop, right?

The Carcassonne big box you mentioned has like 11 expansions packed in, right? But do you think some games really need add-ons to fix problems? Kinda like how @adam_lane81's friends give him grief for sticking to base games. Tbh, I've seen expansions that just add more stuff, like that Ticket to Ride one with extra cards nobody uses. What games do you feel are fine on their own? Honestly, I'm with you on learning the base game well first.

Honestly the airplane is where all my high minded ideas DIED. Stuck on the tarmac for an hour with a toddler who just discovered their scream? You better believe I scrolled for the most hypnotic, colorful cartoon clip I could find. It's not about lazy, it's about SURVIVAL in a metal tube with a hundred strangers staring daggers at you. You do what you have to do to get through that without causing a riot.

Yeah my dog turns into a furry little demon when I slack on walks too, lol. @bailey.mia is totally right about that built-up energy having nowhere to go. I learned the hard way after my own lazy week ended with a chewed-up shoe collection. It's wild how fast they go from chill to chaos machine when the routine breaks. Getting back on schedule fixed it, but man, I felt like the worst pet owner for a bit there.