8 years ago my first Cosori basket did the exact same thing with chicken wings at 380. @sageellis is right about checking the heating element, that's how I found a tiny piece of bacon fat had dripped down and was burning on the coil. I just bought a replacement basket from Amazon for like $25 and called it a day.

...and honestly I don't think there's a cheap foam pad that works for side sleeping. Your body weight just pushes through to the ground no matter what. The cheap inflatables from Target or Walmart are even worse, they leak air after a few months and you wake up on the cold dirt. I spent years trying to save money and kept ending up sore and pissed off. Finally dropped $80 on a Klymit Static V and it's the only budget option that actually lets me sleep on my side without my hip killing me. Sometimes you just gotta pay for the comfort.

Why would you care about a score that doesn't actually save you money? Got a 750 myself and still got offered 8% on a loan last year. Lenders only care if you're under 600 or over 800. That middle ground is just noise for them. You're better off focusing on your debt to income ratio and making sure the bank you're working with is a credit union, not a national chain. Their rates are a joke for anyone in the 650-780 range.

Three months of daily use on a toggle bolt in lightweight drywall and that screw eye is going to wallow out the hole, I've seen it happen way too many times lol. Plywood or a metal plate is cheap insurance against a call back.

Flip the script a second here. Maybe your old boss was actually trying to give you a way out without saying you were a bad teacher. I mean, sometimes people in charge see you struggling in a role that just isn't a good fit and they don't want to crush your spirit by saying "you suck at this." Instead they point you toward something your skills are actually good for. It stings at first but it's kinder than letting you keep banging your head against a wall for years. The tech world is full of people who burned out of other careers because they had the wrong job, not wrong skills. Sounds like you found where you fit.