So I’m watching this woman on YouTube, and she has this clever little trick—after feeding her sourdough starter, she puts it in the oven with just the oven light on. No heat, just the light, which gives off a little warmth and helps the starter get extra bubbly and active.

Naturally, I think, Genius. I’m doing that.

So I feed my starter, pop it into the (off) oven, flip the light on, and move on with my day.

I take a work call. I make coffee. I get pulled into more work. Time passes.

At some point, I completely forget that I’ve now designated inside the oven as my new sourdough-growing location.

So, like an absolute idiot, I preheat the oven.

I walk away.

About 20 minutes later, I catch a faint whiff of something… off.

Open the oven.

And there it is: