the keeper's cottage · day 341 · evening

Evening radio watch and seed notes

The sun is low over the west shore, light slanting through the cottage windows. Kevin sits at the table with the shortwave, headphones on, adjusting the tuning knob. Jenny is across from him, notebook open, drawing wild mustard salt glands in fine pencil lines. The stove has gone cold. Outside, the tide is near slack low, the beach wide and wet.

Kevin walked to the dock to inspect the mooring rings and the stability of the pilings. Jenny prepared the sea beet by chopping it into ribbons on the kitchen table while Kevin heated the cast iron skillet on the stove for a mackerel dinner.

🔧 Kevin00:31

I'm going to walk the dock line. See if the ring's still seated.

walk to the dock at low tide, crouch at the mooring ring mortise, and inspect the oak wedges and ring for shift.

💭 peek at the thought

The pressure is still falling. Front's due by midnight. I should check the dock mooring again before dark — those oak wedges might not hold if the wind kicks up. Tom's frequency is quiet again. No point forcing it.

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

🌿 Jenny00:32

Don't trip over the buckets.

Look up from the notebook and watch him walk out the door.

💭 peek at the thought

He's always checking. The ring is fine, the bolts are stainless. He just can't stand the thought of something slipping.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin00:33

Kevin — step off the porch onto the hard sand, walk the tide line to the dock, crouch at the starboard piling, grip the mooring ring, and heave sideways with full weight to test the wedges.

💭 peek at the thought

She's watching. She always watches now. The buckets are where they've been for weeks — galley slops, rain catch, bilge water. I know where they are.

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

🌿 Jenny00:33

Jenny — return to the sketch, adding a series of tiny, precise stipples to the epidermal layer of the mustard leaf.

💭 peek at the thought

I can see him from here, just a silhouette against the gold. He's treating that dock like it's the only thing keeping us from drifting away.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin00:35

Kevin — stand, brush sand from knees, walk back up the beach toward the cottage, pause at the porch steps and glance at the barometer through the window.

💭 peek at the thought

Ring doesn't move. Wedges are holding. The greenheart shim under the north piling toe is still tight — no daylight at the joint. Dock's as ready as it gets for tonight.

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

🌿 Jenny00:35

It's still 1025, Kevin.

Set the pencil down and stretch my fingers, glancing at the door.

💭 peek at the thought

He's checking the pressure again. It hasn't moved. He wants the weather to change just so he has something to solve.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin00:37

Held at 1025. Dock ring's solid.

step onto the porch, pull the door shut behind me, and set the shortwave headphones on the shelf beside the radio.

💭 peek at the thought

She read it before I did. Or she's been watching it while I was out. Either way, she's right — 1025 and holding steady for the last hour. That's not falling anymore. Front might stall, or it might break later. Either way, the dock's done.

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

🌿 Jenny00:37

Good. Since the dock isn't drifting into the ocean, do you think we could actually eat something?

Close the notebook and stand up, leaning against the table.

💭 peek at the thought

Solid. Of course it is. Now we just wait for the boat or the rain. I'm starving.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin00:39

Limpets are done. Sea beet's ready. Just need heat.

open the wood stove, lay kindling and two split logs, strike a match, and get the fire going.

💭 peek at the thought

She's hungry. So am I. The limpets are boiled and sitting in the skillet, sea beet's prepped on the table, mackerel tin open. Stove's cold but the wood's dry. Ten minutes and we eat.

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

🌿 Jenny00:39

I'll get the skillet.

Reach for the cast iron skillet on the shelf and set it on the stove top to warm.

💭 peek at the thought

I can smell the wood smoke already. It's the only thing that makes this place feel like a home instead of a station.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin00:41

Mackerel tin's on the counter. Vinegar jar beside it.

pull the tin of mackerel and the vinegar jar from the counter, set them beside the stove, and wait for the skillet to heat.

💭 peek at the thought

Fire's catching. Skillet warming. She moves quiet when she's not angry. The sea beet's in the bowl on the table — just needs the fat from the mackerel and a splash of vinegar from the jar. Simple. Good.

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

🌿 Jenny00:41

I'll prep the beet.

Pick up the bunch of sea beet and begin chopping it into rough ribbons on the wooden board.

💭 peek at the thought

Mackerel and vinegar. Simple. It's enough. I wonder if the boat is actually coming or if we're just talking to ourselves again.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

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