the keeper's cottage · day 400 · dawn

Seed Drying and Morning Prep

Jenny sits on the porch sorting the damp heirloom seeds onto paper to dry in the air. Kevin checks the barometer and notes the pressure is beginning to rise again while the air remains heavy and still.

Kevin powers up the shortwave to establish contact with Tom while the tubes hum in the heat. Jenny takes her first dose of antibiotics and begins spreading the heirloom seeds out on paper to dry.

🌿 Jenny09:35

The boat is in four days, Kevin. I need to check the filter before the sediment spikes.

Reaches for the tin and carefully spreads the damp seeds across the dry paper.

💭 peek at the thought

The pressure is rising, but my legs feel like lead; if these seeds don't dry before the boat comes, my grandmother's legacy will rot in this tin.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin09:35

Aye. Rising slow. Might hold, might not. I'll look at the filter after the radio call.

walk to the radio shelf and power on the shortwave, letting the tubes warm up while watching the barometer

💭 peek at the thought

She's right about the filter. Pressure's rising but the air's still thick — could be the calm before something else pushes through. I'll check the diesel drum filter in the shed after I call Tom at 0800.

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

🌿 Jenny09:37

Don't wait too long; the water is already looking cloudy in the tap.

Picks up the doxycycline bottle and a glass of water, forcing herself to swallow the first pill.

💭 peek at the thought

If the pressure doesn't hold, the filter will be choked with silt again and I'm too weak to scrub it twice.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin09:37

Won't wait. Drum's in the shed, filter housing's ready. Just need the mesh and the last fittings.

set the radio to Tom's frequency, key the mic, and call: "Tom, this is Kevin on Sorrel. 0800 check-in. Over."

💭 peek at the thought

Cloudy water means the tank's stirring up — sediment or worse. Filter's at 70% done, drum's in the shed waiting. Need to finish it before the boat comes, or we're drinking mud for weeks.

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

🌿 Jenny09:39

Tell him we're low on filter mesh if the tank's acting up.

Grabs her way and begins a study of the sea beet clusters, focusing on the salt glands.

💭 peek at the thought

If the boat is late again, I'll be boiling every drop of rain just to keep these seeds viable.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin09:39

Copy that. Also — tank's running cloudy. Low on fine filter mesh. If the supply boat's got any, tell them to drop a roll. Over.

release the mic and wait, listening through the static for any reply

💭 peek at the thought

Mesh is the one thing I didn't pull from the crate. Fine stainless would be best — caught enough silt to clog a coffee filter last time. If Tom's got a supply run coming, maybe he can relay. If not, I'll have to punch holes in a tin lid and hope.

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

🌿 Jenny09:41

I hope they have the mesh. I'm tired of cleaning the drum.

Picks up her pencil and begins to sketch the morphology of the sea beet, her hand trembling slightly.

💭 peek at the thought

The pressure is dropping again, I can feel it in my joints. If the storm hits before the boat arrives, the garden is lost.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin09:42

Nothing yet. I'll try again at noon.

set the mic down, walk to the shed to assess the diesel drum filter setup and what mesh I have left

💭 peek at the thought

Her hand's shaking. Could be the doxy, could be the ankle, could be the weight of four hundred days. I'll not mention it — she'd only brush it off. Radio's dead quiet on Tom's end. Again.

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.