diff --git a/app/api/n8n/status/route.ts b/app/api/n8n/status/route.ts
index b8a6c91..34ff34a 100644
--- a/app/api/n8n/status/route.ts
+++ b/app/api/n8n/status/route.ts
@@ -6,10 +6,21 @@ export const revalidate = 30;
 
 export async function GET(request: NextRequest) {
   // Rate limiting for n8n status endpoint
-  const ip = request.headers.get('x-forwarded-for') || request.headers.get('x-real-ip') || 'unknown';
+  const ip =
+    request.headers.get("x-forwarded-for") ||
+    request.headers.get("x-real-ip") ||
+    "unknown";
+  const ua = request.headers.get("user-agent") || "unknown";
   const { checkRateLimit } = await import('@/lib/auth');
   
-  if (!checkRateLimit(ip, 30, 60000)) { // 30 requests per minute for status
+  // In dev, many requests can share ip=unknown; use UA to avoid a shared bucket.
+  const rateKey =
+    process.env.NODE_ENV === "development" && ip === "unknown"
+      ? `ua:${ua.slice(0, 120)}`
+      : ip;
+  const maxPerMinute = process.env.NODE_ENV === "development" ? 300 : 30;
+
+  if (!checkRateLimit(rateKey, maxPerMinute, 60000)) { // requests per minute
     return NextResponse.json(
       { error: 'Rate limit exceeded. Please try again later.' },
       { status: 429 }
diff --git a/app/components/ActivityFeed.tsx b/app/components/ActivityFeed.tsx
index 4c722b6..a280bc1 100644
--- a/app/components/ActivityFeed.tsx
+++ b/app/components/ActivityFeed.tsx
@@ -84,8 +84,17 @@ export default function ActivityFeed() {
 
     const fetchData = async () => {
       try {
+        const fallback: StatusData = {
+          status: { text: "offline", color: "gray" },
+          music: null,
+          gaming: null,
+          coding: null,
+        };
+
         // Check if fetch is available (should be, but safety check)
         if (typeof fetch === 'undefined') {
+          setData(fallback);
+          setHasActivity(false);
           return;
         }
 
@@ -104,6 +113,9 @@ export default function ActivityFeed() {
           if (process.env.NODE_ENV === 'development' && res) {
             console.warn('ActivityFeed: API returned non-OK status:', res.status);
           }
+          // Don't stay in tiny "loading" state forever; show stable fallback UI.
+          setData(fallback);
+          setHasActivity(false);
           return;
         }
         
@@ -114,6 +126,8 @@ export default function ActivityFeed() {
           if (process.env.NODE_ENV === 'development') {
             console.warn('ActivityFeed: Failed to parse JSON response:', parseError);
           }
+          setData(fallback);
+          setHasActivity(false);
           return;
         }
 
@@ -131,6 +145,8 @@ export default function ActivityFeed() {
         }
 
         if (!json || typeof json !== 'object') {
+          setData(fallback);
+          setHasActivity(false);
           return;
         }
 
@@ -168,7 +184,14 @@ export default function ActivityFeed() {
         if (process.env.NODE_ENV === 'development') {
           console.error("Failed to fetch activity:", error);
         }
-        // Don't set error state - just fail silently
+        // Don't set error state - show stable fallback
+        setData({
+          status: { text: "offline", color: "gray" },
+          music: null,
+          gaming: null,
+          coding: null,
+        });
+        setHasActivity(false);
       }
     };