If you want to be able to trim off the ends, I suggest a double fisherman's instead (aka the double overhand stopper) with both strands (hold them together while you tie and treat them as a single strand).
https://www.animatedknots.com/double-overhand-stopper-knot
With either knot, after you trim, you can melt the ends of the elastic cord. It will "mushroom" a bit, which will also prevent the tips from creeping into the knot and coming loose.
A flat overhand bend in the elastic cord is what I recommend: https://www.animatedknots.com/flat-overhand-bend-knot
Justification:
Simple, not bulky, reasonably secure against shaking loose, and relatively easy to untie.
As suggested in another comment, a double figure eight could be used as well. It will be more bulky and a bit less likely to come loose.
I think we're saying the same thing?
You have your end grain slab laid on a table in front of you. From left to right divide cut it into parallel pieces (width of these is up to you 2" or 3" is probably fine). With them all laid on the table on their original pattern, rotate or flip alternating slices. Glue it up.
The bigger the wood the more movement it will have. End grain boards like you describe often have their pieces oriented in opposing directions to manage the warping due to expansion and contraction. Plus the more pieces the more glue jointing holding it together.
To provide more stability, you could cut a series of slices and flip every other one such that the curve of the grain is alternating.
Credit where due: https://www.instagram.com/p/C9LzdpYCryE/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
(I have no affiliation with this store. Sharing because their shirts go hard.)
I agree that the pulseaudio control panel is the best (graphical) tool for managing different input/output devices are.
For what it's worth, the SteamDeck is Linux. If something broke for HD2 on SteamDeck, there would be a lot of people discussing it as a major issue.
To expand upon this, if your mic isn't working in pulseaudio, it won't work anywhere else. Confirming your input and levels in there is the first step.
Pizza dough is a great option at that point too.
I like to recommend the episode(s) on John McAfee when people first start Bastards. They're wild and not nearly as dark/heavy as some episodes can be.