Beomurf

I think the answer you need will come from answering this question? What are you tying the fly for... If its for something like I don't know fishing...then you only need to please yourself the effectiveness difference is marginal at best If its to display, present or to showoff in some way I think there is jungle cock and "not jungle cock" like many substitutes over time you'll appreciate it less and less

No but I keep a big rectangle of bike inner-tube with me...great for stuck ferrules and for my Nautilus reels (though my biggest issue is lack of room for my knuckles)

Crooked and deformed work best

Braided mono and pilobond is an option too.

First a popper....then a Black Snake fly

My dear departed father used to say "If you want to know the easiest way to do anything ask the laziest guy you know..." I'm likely in the running. I have a several fly wallets that come with two sets of ziploc chambers inside a nylon semi-rigid shell. They have a loop perfect for a stripping basket strap and a pocket big enough for a thing of leader material...or better yet just use one of the ziploc things for leaders - I use one of the chambers for shooting heads so I can carry everything light an easy on my stripping basket which I was going to carry anyways.

I've done well using a smallish Rapala as the bubble - I swap the trebles for a single hook.

They work. Started using them a few years ago - figured it was an easy tie for my daughter and to keep her away from my good stuff. A pack of the material is basically a life-time supply. I like them best with a palmered hackle for the abdomen but I think thats just fly tyer hubris.

If you are ever fishing a feel a slight something that might have been a hit but it wasn't, almost like a pocket of heavier water....use a squid fly. You will rarely see a squid - they are mostly invisible after all - but they are around more often than not

Hard to beat a slightly up-sized woolly bugger...tan for sand, olive in the marshes

"recipe" might give better results

Oasis makes a very pretty and functional brush machine for around $140. Personally, I still don't understand the point of brushes aside from the speed of tying flies with them (and since I tye primarily to waste my limited time on Earth...)

Sorry to hear that used to love tying there.

AirBnB's - noise pollution most summer nights hard to get to sleep with the windows open

That's pretty much what I use. I mount the foam on a tube fly and tie the dressing to a circle hook. Improves hook-ups and the foam lasts a lot longer since it slides out of the way afterwards - only a major issue during bluefish blitzes... I have found that Topwater is a situation where the circle hooks shine since the key is the fish has to take the fly and then turn away, which is a pretty much a given with topwater.