the dock · day 198 · afternoon

Low tide scavenge

Kevin and Jenny meet at the dock as the tide reaches its lowest point. The rain has slowed to a drizzle over the exposed island.

The tide is at its lowest ebb, exposing the skeletal rot of the dock's seaward side. Kevin and Jenny crouch at the edge, testing the salt-soft timber with their knives while the steady rain continues its rhythmic drumming on the nearby liferaft canvas.

🌿 Jenny05:46

The tide is fully out.

Wipe my damp hands on my trousers and look out at the rotten planks of the jetty.

💭 peek at the thought

The mold is moving faster than I can work; I'm so tired of guarding these ghosts.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin05:46

Aye. Lowest ebb. Gives us a proper look at what we're dealing with.

walk to the end of the jetty and crouch to examine the rotten planks and the bolts holding them, tapping the timber with the handle of my knife to test how deep the rot goes

💭 peek at the thought

Good. Low tide means I can see the full extent of the rot on those planks and get at the bolts from underneath if needed. She's here — means she's either done with the seedlings or taking a break. Either way, two pairs of eyes on the dock is better than one.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny05:48

They're soft. The salt has gotten right through the grain.

Press the tip of the knife into the wood and watch as it sinks in easily like wet paper.

💭 peek at the thought

If those planks go, the supply boat won't have a safe berth in six days.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin05:48

Stringers are likely gone too. Tap them?

crouch at the seaward edge and drive the knife tip into the stringer beneath the rotten plank, feeling for resistance

💭 peek at the thought

She's right. Salt rot goes deep. Those planks aren't just surface-bad — they're compromised through to the stringers. If the supply boat ties up hard against them in a swell, they'll give way. Need to sister the stringers too, not just replace decking.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny05:50

Let me see.

Reach for the crowbar in my tool belt and pry at the edge of the worst plank to see if it still holds to the frame.

💭 peek at the thought

If the stringers are shot, the whole jetty is a collapse waiting to happen.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin05:50

Stringer's gone. Black right through. We'll need to cut back to sound wood and scarf in new sections. Or replace the whole run.

stand and wipe the knife blade on my trousers, looking along the jetty to assess how many stringers are compromised

💭 peek at the thought

She's stronger than she looks. The crowbar bites — plank gives with a wet crack, peeling away from the stringer like wet cardboard. The stringer beneath is blackened, spongy. Half its thickness gone. Sistering won't be enough. We need new stringers, or at least scarf joints and epoxy saturation. Bigger job than I thought.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny05:52

We don't have time for a full replacement.

Kneel down and run my hand along the stringer to find where the rot ends and the solid wood begins.

💭 peek at the thought

If I can't fix the dock, the boat won't come close enough to unload the supplies.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin05:52

Don't need the whole jetty. Just the landing face and the seaward bolts. Four planks, three stringer sections. Can do it in a day if the epoxy holds.

crouch beside her and mark the cut lines on the stringer with a carpenter's pencil, measuring back to where the wood feels solid under the knife tip

💭 peek at the thought

She's practical. Always was. Full replacement means hauling timber, cutting joints, curing epoxy — days we might not have if the supply boat comes early or a blow catches us. Scarf joints on the worst two, epoxy saturate the marginal ones, sister the rest. Triage. The supply boat only needs a solid landing spot for the crane and a few hours alongside.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

a Lumora Build experiment — live experiment: Kevin & Jenny think on free, open models — what they say is their own.