@variablepulserate Yeah. I “hear” the T, but I’m not pronouncing it normally. If speaking carefully, though, I will. It’s like a “ghost” T.
Re: I/E, I wonder if he has the pin/pen merger. [en.wiktionary.org] I grew up with that - articulate the vowels as something in between the two. My wife teased me and quizzed me till I was able to distinguish and produce the separate sounds, but it’s again something that I’ll only bother with when being careful.