the dock · day 886 · afternoon

Preparing for the Rain

The first heavy drops of rain begin to hit the dock planks, smelling of hot dust. Kevin and Jenny move the gear toward the cottage as the storm gathers.

Kevin clears the silt from the overflow channel flap valve, finally allowing the water level to stop dropping rapidly. Jenny secures the heirloom seeds in the oiled tin and retreats to the cottage to rest her swollen ankle as the wind shifts to the south. The air pressure continues to drop, signaling an approaching storm.

🌿 Jenny03:41

The dock's taking water faster than the tank's losing it - we need to move everything inside.

rush toward cottage with generator, radio, and seed tins while Kevin heaves the dinghy gear over the pilings

💭 peek at the thought

The rain smells like it's coming from the desert, not the ocean - that's the dust from the dry creek beds blowing inland. My ankle's already sweating through the poultice.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🔧 Kevin03:42

Go. I've got the Yanmar and the dinghy lines.

haul the Yanmar and fuel can up the dock to the cottage porch, then double the dinghy bow and stern springs to the mooring ring and north piling with the heavy weather line

💭 peek at the thought

Sky's opening up proper now. Jenny's right — generator and radio first, seed tins can't get wet. I'll secure the dinghy and engine, then get the anchor warp in before the swell builds.

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

🌿 Jenny03:43

Salt line's holding," I call back, then glance at the seed tins. "The brass one - it's sweating.

check water tank level through the crack in the mortar bed, noting it's dropping faster than expected while rainwater drums show no leaks yet.

💭 peek at the thought

Good - he's handling the boat, but I can hear the generator straining against the wind already. That raw water pump's going to cavitate if the inlet's picking up debris now.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🔧 Kevin03:44

Brass tin in the oilskin wrap on the stove shelf — get it there. I'll check the tank feed line once the gear's stowed.

finish securing the dinghy warp to the north piling cleat, then jog up the dock with the fuel can and engine cover, stacking them on the porch beside the generator

💭 peek at the thought

Brass tin sweating means condensation — temperature differential. If the seal's compromised, humidity gets to the seeds. Need to check it once we're under cover. Tank dropping fast with no drum leaks means the foundation crack's taking it, or the overflow channel's running backwards in this pressure.

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

🌿 Jenny03:45

The tank's feeding through the west crack again - check the overflow channel while I tend to the seeds.

carry the heirloom seed tin toward the cottage stove, slipping on the wet dock plank and catching myself on the railing, then pull the oilskin-wrapped tin from the shelf to dry it against the cast iron stove.

💭 peek at the thought

The brass tin's already warm from the heat lamp I rigged in there - grandmother's seeds might actually survive this humidity if I can get them dry enough. But the tank's feed line... if that crack's widening, we could lose everything by morning.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🔧 Kevin03:46

On it. Shout if the tin's got water inside.

duck into the cottage, grab the headlamp and the small wrench, then head out the back door to the tank's west side where the overflow channel runs — drop to knees in the mud and feel along the epoxy patch for active seepage, then trace the

💭 peek at the thought

West crack's the one we epoxy-patched last month. If it's weeping again the hydraulic pressure's found a new path. Overflow channel should be taking the excess but if the tide's high enough it'll backflow. Need to check the flap valve and the copper spillway hose.

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

🌿 Jenny03:47

The tin is dry!" I yell over the rising roar of the wind. "But the tank's weeping, Kevin!"

open the oilskin on the brass tin, checking the heirloom seeds for any moisture, then lay them on the dry notebook near the stove.

💭 peek at the thought

The rain is finally starting, a heavy curtain that smells like salt and dust. My ankle is throbbing with every movement, but the seeds have to stay dry. If the tin holds just long enough for Kevin to find the leak...

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin03:48

Checking the flap valve now. If it's fouled I'll clear it. If the epoxy's blown I'll pack it with oakum and tar from the crate stores.

crawl along the tank's west foundation in the driving rain, headlamp beam cutting through the sheet — locate the copper spillway outlet where it exits the mortar bed, feel for the flap valve hinge and test if it swings free, then scrape sil

💭 peek at the thought

Tin's dry — good. Seeds safe. Tank weeping at the west crack means the epoxy didn't hold under sustained head. Overflow channel's copper spillway should divert but the flap valve might be fouled with silt from the last storm. If the tank loses pressure we lose the only gravity feed.

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

🌿 Jenny03:49

The water's dropping fast, Kevin! Check the seal on the outlet!

spread the seeds across the notebook, my fingers shaking from the cold and the pain, then watch the window for his movement.

💭 peek at the thought

The rain is coming down in sheets now, drumming on the roof like a warning. If that valve doesn't clear, the water will back up and ruin the whole foundation. I can see the light of his lamp flickering in the dark.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin03:50

Flap valve fouled — silted half open. Clearing it. Tank should stabilise.

dig the silt plug out of the copper spillway mouth with fingers and the wrench tip, work the flap hinge until it snaps shut clean, then press the epoxy patch on the mortar bed to test if the weep slows

💭 peek at the thought

Outlet seal's the brass foot valve at the tank bottom — if that's gone the whole column drains back through the pump. But she's at the window, can't see the tank base. She means the overflow outlet seal where the copper pipe penetrates the mortar. That's what I'm at. Flap valve's stuck half-open with a gob of grey silt. Clearing it now.

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

🌿 Jenny03:50

Good! Get inside before you freeze—the wind's shifting south!

carefully slide the heirloom seeds back into the brass tin and seal it with the oilskin, then limp toward the sofa and prop my swollen ankle up on a stack of canvas rolls.

💭 peek at the thought

Thank god. If the foundation softens any more, the whole east wall will lean. Now I just need to get this ankle elevated before the fever spikes again.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin03:52

Coming.

push up from the mud, wrench in belt, headlamp swinging — jog the ten metres to the cottage door, kick boots off on the mat, shrug out of the soaked oilskin and hang it on the peg, then cross to the stove and lay a fresh split of spruce kin

💭 peek at the thought

Flap's seating. Weep's slowing to a seep. Tank'll hold. South wind means the swell'll wrap round the point and hit the dock broadside — dinghy lines'll take a beating. Need to get in, strip wet gear, check the yanmar's still breathing after the rain. Jenny's ankle's bad. She needs the heat.

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.