the keeper's cottage · day 263 · afternoon

Evening Preparation for the Boat

The sun dips behind the heavy grey clouds as Kevin and Jenny gather in the cottage to discuss the list for the supply boat's arrival.

Kevin spent the afternoon attempting to repair the shortwave radio components but struggled with the delicate insulator work. Jenny checked the water tank for sediment and documented sea beet morphology in her notebook. The air remains heavy and still as the supply boat approaches.

🌿 Jenny20:12

We need more lime for the beds, and a proper waterproof casing for the radio. The way is dropping.

Lay the matching open on the kitchen table and point to the sketch of the sea beet.

💭 peek at the thought

If the boat doesn't come tomorrow, we'll be out of fuel for the generator before the next cycle.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin20:13

Lime's on the list. Two bags. Water test strips too — down to four. Radio... I need N-type connectors, RG-213 coax, and a proper bulkhead feed-through. The ceramic insulator's gone. Been taping it. Won't hold.

pull a stubby pencil from the shelf and add to the supply list on the table

💭 peek at the thought

The barometer's steady at 980, but Jenny's right about the water — taste has been off since the last big blow. Lime's easy. Radio casing... that's the real problem. The ceramic insulator shattered last week. Coax is rotted. I've been patching with self-amalgamating tape and hope. Need proper N-type connectors, RG-213, and a feed-through that won't arc in salt spray.

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

🌿 Jenny20:14

And a few more tinned way. I'm tired of eating limpets every night. The pressure is falling.

Trace the edge of the salt gland sketch in the notebook, then look at the own.

💭 peek at the thought

He's right about the coax; the salt air eats through tape in a week.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin20:14

Mackerel, corned beef. Coffee. Flour — the last sack got chewed. Write it down.

lean against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching her hand on the notebook

💭 peek at the thought

She's not wrong about the limpets. Six tins of mackerel left, five corned beef. That's protein for maybe three weeks if we're careful. The supply boat's due tomorrow — if it comes. Barometer's steady but she feels the drop in her bones before the needle moves. Always does.

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

🌿 Jenny20:16

I've got it. And we need more seeds. The ones that actually handle the salt.

Write 'FLOUR' on the list, then close the notebook with a soft thud.

💭 peek at the thought

The rat is getting bolder. I need to check the traps in the pantry tonight.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin20:16

Sea kale. Samphire. Extra beet. Write it down.

pick up the pencil and add the seeds to the list, then fold it and tuck it into my pocket

💭 peek at the thought

Salt-tolerant seeds. She's thinking ahead. The beet's doing okay, but the tomatoes and basil are struggling. Heirloom tin's damp but viable. Still, we need backups — things that won't bolt or rot in the spray. Sea kale. Samphire. Maybe more beet. She's right — we can't keep limping along on limpets and hope.

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

🌿 Jenny20:18

I'll check the garden after the rain hits. The air is too heavy anyway.

Stand up and walk toward the porch, looking out at the grey-green horizon.

💭 peek at the thought

He's always thinking about the stomach, and I'm thinking about the soil.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin20:18

I'll finish the radio insulator tonight. Ceramic from the spark plug box. Self-amalgamating tape. Should hold until the boat.

turn and walk to the workbench, pick up the cracked insulator fragments and the spool of tape

💭 peek at the thought

She's retreating. Not from me — from the weight of it all. The radio silence. The limpets. The brother she won't name. I see it in the way she touches the notebook before she closes it. Not anger. Exhaustion. The kind that settles in the bones after too many grey days.

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

🌿 Jenny20:20

Just make sure it's waterproof. I need that radio working for tomorrow.

Lean against the railing of the porch, watching the tide swell against the rocks.

💭 peek at the thought

Ceramic won't stop the corrosion forever, but it's all we have.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin20:21

It'll be waterproof.

sit at the workbench, file the ceramic edges smooth, mix a dab of epoxy putty, seat the insulator in the bracket, wrap the base tight with tape

💭 peek at the thought

She needs it working for the boat. For the medevac forms I already filled out. For the one-line letter to Tom I still haven't sent. The ceramic insulator from the spark plug box — it's the right diameter, high voltage rated. If I seat it in the bracket with epoxy putty and wrap the base with self-amalgamating tape, it'll shed water. Coax is the weak link. Shield continuity failed. Need to splice in the RG-213 from the supply stores if it comes. If.

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

🌿 Jenny20:22

I'm going to check the water tank. The sediment might be getting high.

Walk to the back of the cottage, kick the side of the 400-litre tank.

💭 peek at the thought

The barometer is dropping too fast. If the boat misses us, we're down to last.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin20:22

Tank's good. Three-ninety-four. I checked it yesterday after the blow.

keep my hands on the insulator wrap, finish sealing the tape overlap, then reach for the coax stub and the spare RG-213 from the locker

💭 peek at the thought

She's avoiding the radio. Avoiding me. The tank's at 394 — fine. Sediment's been low since we flushed it after the last storm. She just needs to move. To do something with her hands that isn't sketching salt glands or staring at the horizon. I get it.

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

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