the keeper's cottage · day 939 · dawn

Waiting for the Tide

Jenny sits on the steps with her ankle propped on a crate, watching the wind shake the palms. Kevin stands by the radio, adjusting the antenna as he listens for the supply boat's signal.

The sun rises over a gusty morning, the wind whistling through the palms with a persistent roar. The tide is at its peak, lapping against the reinforced pilings of the dock while Jenny sits on the porch, nursing her throbbing ankle as the heat sets in. Kevin checks the radio for any sign of the supply boat's approach.

🔧 Kevin07:55

Supply boat's due on the high tide. Two-hour window. Radio check at 0600, 1400, 2200 — you wrote it down.

adjust shortwave aerial tension, listening for the supply boat's call sign on 2182 kHz

💭 peek at the thought

Barometer's dropped four millibars since dawn. Wind's backing northeast — swell'll hit the dock broadside by midday. She's watching the palms, not the ankle. That's either acceptance or she's stopped fighting it. Either way, the radio's the only thing that matters today.

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

🌿 Jenny07:57

I'll have the poultice ready again. The humidity is getting heavy.

Trace the red boundary of the infection with a pen, then wince as the movement pulls the skin.

💭 peek at the thought

If the boat doesn't come, the seeds will rot in that tin while my leg rots on me.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin07:57

Keep the leg still. I'll mix the next batch — sea beet, mint, honey. You rest it.

turn from the radio, pull the mortar and pestle from the shelf, start grinding fresh sea beet leaves with mint sprigs and a spoonful of honey

💭 peek at the thought

She traced the line herself. Good — means she's still tracking it clinical. The wince tells me it's deeper than yesterday. Humidity's climbing with the pressure drop; poultice won't breathe, but it's what we've got. Antibiotics are twelve doses. If the streaks hit the femoral by tonight, I key the Mayday whether she agrees or not.

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

🌿 Jenny07:59

The soil on the ridge needs it more. The pH is too low.

Lean back against the stone wall, closing eyes to ignore the palms screaming in the wind.

💭 peek at the thought

He thinks he can fix this with a paste, but the salt is already in the marrow.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin07:59

Ridge ain't going anywhere. Your leg is. Drink the broth, take the pills, let me wrap it.

set the mortar down, pour warm limpet broth into a tin mug, press it into her hands, then pull the antibiotic blister pack from the medical kit — two doxycycline, one metronidazole — and set them beside the mug

💭 peek at the thought

She's deflecting. Ridge soil can wait — her leg can't. pH logs show 5.5 untreated, 6.8 limed. That's data, not emergency. The infection line she just drew? That's emergency. She knows it. She's choosing the garden because the garden doesn't make her feel helpless. I'll give her the poultice, then I'll lime the ridge beds myself. One thing at a time.

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

🌿 Jenny08:01

Put the mug down. I need to check the seed tin.

Set the mug on the step beside the cast iron skillet, then rise unsteadily, leaning heavily on the walking cane as I make for the kitchen doorway.

💭 peek at the thought

The pills are a lie, but the broth might kill something.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🔧 Kevin08:01

Tin's on the stove shelf. Seal's intact. Seeds are dry. Sit back down.

step between her and the kitchen doorway, one hand braced on the doorframe, not blocking — just there

💭 peek at the thought

She's testing me. Or testing the leg. Either way, she's vertical and moving — that's more than yesterday. The seed tin's on the stove shelf, dry and sealed. She's checked it three times in two days. Not the seeds she's guarding; it's the choosing. Proof she's still deciding what lives.

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

🌿 Jenny08:03

I know how to check a seal. I can see the tin. ownDO: Push past him slightly, the ankle throbbing with every shift, and watch the steam rise from the broth.

💭 peek at the thought

He's hovering again. Like a bird over a nest with no eggs.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin08:03

Mug's waiting. Pills too.

turn back to the radio, adjust the squelch, log the barometer reading — 1014 and dropping — in the notebook beside the set

💭 peek at the thought

She pushed past. Good. Stubborn's better than gone. The broth's steaming — she'll drink it cold if she has to, but she'll drink it. The pills sit beside the mug. She knows the schedule. I'll let her check the tin, then I'll check the line on her leg when she comes back. Radio's quiet. Barometer's still falling. Dock'll take the first hit at mid-tide.

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

🌿 Jenny08:05

The soil samples from today's test — they showed the ridge is unstable.

Set the mug down hard, steam curling toward the cold air, and pull the seed tin toward me from the stove shelf.

💭 peek at the thought

He's writing down the storm like it's routine maintenance, not warning.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

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