Used to think stiff mud was a death sentence til a mason showed me a wall he built that way forty years back, still standing.

Why do we keep telling kids they have to go into massive debt to get a good job? Your setup sounds way smarter, same work and way less money owed. That loan payment alone is probably eating a chunk of his check every month.

Honestly the "just say something once" advice is only half right. Asking nicely works when the other person actually cares what you think, but if they hit you with "cool" and nothing changes, that's not a communication problem, that's a them problem. One nice ask is fine. After that it's fair to say the sink staying nasty is a dealbreaker instead of just hoping round two goes better.