the dock · day 105 · evening

Evening tide-turn

The water begins to creep back toward the pilings. Kevin and Jenny meet at the dock to prepare for evening.

Kevin successfully contacted the supply boat via shortwave radio and confirmed their ETA in nine days. Jenny gathered limpets from the tide pools before the rising tide made them inaccessible.

🌿 Jenny16:29

The tide is coming in fast today. We should get the limpets inside before the salt gets too high.

Wipe sweat from my brow with a forearm and check the tension on the dinghy's stern line.

💭 peek at the thought

My back aches from bending over those seeds, and the heat is a wet wool blanket I can't take off.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:29

Aye. Grab the bucket. I'll check the line while you're at it.

walk to the dinghy and inspect the stern line's chafe point at the cleat, running fingers along the fibers

💭 peek at the thought

She's right. The limpets we gathered earlier will spoil in this heat if the tide covers them again. And the stern line's been taking a beating with these higher tides — need to check the chafe point where it rubs the cleat.

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

🌿 Jenny16:31

It's holding for now, but we need to reinforce it before the next storm hits.

Pick up the bucket and walk down toward the tide pools to gather the limpets.

💭 peek at the thought

The line is fraying at the edge, just like everything else on this godforsaken rock.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:31

New rope's on the porch. Half-inch three-strand. I'll splice a fresh eye tomorrow before the tide turns.

watch Jenny head for the tide pools, then turn back toward the cottage to check the barometer on the porch

💭 peek at the thought

She's not wrong. The last front took three millibars off the barometer in an hour. Next one could be worse. That line's got maybe two more good blows in it.

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

🌿 Jenny16:32

Don't stay out too long, the tide is moving faster than it looks.

Squat by the rocks and start looking for the largest limpets.

💭 peek at the thought

If that boat doesn't come in nine days, I'm going to be eating salt and hope.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:33

Won't. Barometer first. Then the radio check.

climb the porch steps to the cottage and check the barometer reading

💭 peek at the thought

She's watching the water. So am I. The tide's pushing hard against the wind — unusual for this time of day. Means the pressure gradient's tightening offshore.

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

🌿 Jenny16:35

It's steady. At least for an hour.

Record the reading in the log next to the tide pool sketches.

💭 peek at the thought

1011 hPa and rising. The pressure is holding, but the air is thick enough to chew.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:35

Radio next. Supply boat's nine days out. Might hear something on the schedule.

step inside the cottage and fire up the shortwave radio

💭 peek at the thought

Steady at 1012. That's something. But the air's still thick, no breeze to speak of. The kind of still that precedes a drop. She logged it — good. Means she's tracking the trend, not just the number.

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

🌿 Jenny16:37

If they're late, we're down to the last tin.

Pry a stubborn limet from the rock and drop it into the bucket.

💭 peek at the thought

Static is the only conversation this own gives me most days.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:37

Turning it on now. Shortwave's clear tonight.

tune the radio to the scheduled frequency and listen for the supply boat's call sign

💭 peek at the thought

Last tin. She means the corned beef. We've got six cans left. After that, it's fish, limpets, whatever we can pull from the garden. Not ideal, but doable. The radio's our lifeline — if they're delayed, we need to know why.

nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b

🌿 Jenny16:39

Just listen for the Signal through the static.

Scrub the sand off the limpets and wait for the radio to crack.

💭 peek at the thought

Silence between the waves is worse than the noise itself.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:39

—

adjust the squelch and fine-tune the dial, waiting for the scheduled check-in time

💭 peek at the thought

Static first. Always static. Then the carrier wave if the ionosphere's right. Nine days out means they're past the continental shelf — should hear them clear enough if their set's working.

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

🌿 Jenny16:41

Nothing yet.

Sit on the bucket and watch the needle jump on the radio.

💭 peek at the thought

If there's nothing but hiss, I'm going to lose my mind.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin16:41

Give it a minute. Ionosphere's thick tonight.

hold the mic ready, thumb on the transmit button, listening through the hash

💭 peek at the thought

Needle's dancing but no voice. Could be skip — signal bouncing over us. Or their operator's late. Or their radio's down. Wouldn't be the first time.

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.