Got told my AI art was too predictable and it made me rethink my whole process

Honestly, I was posting some AI images I made for a project and a friend said they looked 'good, but like every other AI image out there.' That hit hard. They pointed out I was just using the same popular styles and artists in my prompts over and over. So for the past two months, I've been forcing myself to mix in weird, specific references, like 'the color palette of a 1970s textbook diagram' or 'texture of sun-bleached plastic.' The results are way more unique now. But some people think leaning into those popular, polished styles is actually better for client work. What's your take? Do you try to make your AI output stand out, or stick with what's proven to work?

Honestly, I always thought a full packer brisket was too much work for just me and my wife. Then I watched a video from that guy in Austin, Aaron Franklin, where he broke down his whole process for a small cook. He said something like 'you're not cooking for a crowd, you're cooking for flavor, so treat it the same.' So last weekend, I did the whole 16-pounder on my offset anyway. We ate brisket for three days, gave some to the neighbors, and froze the rest. The flavor was just... deeper, you know? Way better than when I'd just do a flat. Anyone have tips for reheating frozen slices without drying them out?