Thanks! I'm going to keep pushing forward, out of limited time and stubbornness.
Also it seems that posting this brings up the similar threads linked below, which I didn't find before through skimming. hm
In the brewing directions I use every time I brew, it says in bold print Do Not Boil the Grains! during the steeping step.
I accidentally let the grains boil! For at least a couple of minutes!
I can't find anywhere what actually happens if I boil the grains, just that I'm not supposed to...