Photons, Electrons and Packets

It is March 7, 2026, and today I ran some errands.  Joining the amazing Old Point Comfort Yacht Club (I know, I know - teenage me is aghast) has benefits.  For instance I have access to their stretch of beach by the clubhouse.  Which is nice because it is much closer to my office than the Dinghy Pier that the town of Phoebus maintains.

Anyhow, a routine has developed.  I dinghy over to the beach (electric trolling motor FTW).  Once there I bring the dinghy ashore then walk to the car / office.  From there I drive to the dinghy, unload trash / cargo and bring the battery into the office to charge while I run errands.

Except today I decided the battery was charged "enough" and left it in the dinghy.  I ran errands and then reversed my morning routine.  As I rounded the pier and caught sight of F&P on the reverse leg I heard my name from out across the water.

One of the officers of the Yacht Club, who I haven't met yet, has spotted me.  We pulled alongside each other and had a nice conversation.  He mentions that he has my membership packet with him.  Do I want it?

That is how I found myself receiving my club membership packet off the shores of historic Fort Monroe.  We spoke for a while and I was offered a tow back to F&P as we had drifted quite far toward the shipping channel.  I declined and we went our separate ways.

But not for long.  Turns out that my battery wasn't charged 'enough' after all.  Old school rowing ensued.  Soon, I noticed my new sailing friends making a course directly my way.  This time I accepted the tow and arrived without further drama at F&P.

And what does any of this have to do with Photons, Electrons and Packets?  I need photons to make electrons, which I beam into space as TCP/IP packets.  Right now those electrons are being fed to the Dinghy battery.  No starlink for me.  Peak nerd problems.

But how?

First, the USPS misdelivered (yet another package) my generator.  So, I have no redundancy until my refund is issued and I can order anew.

I'm relying entirely on solar for the time being.  I planned on having a generator to 'top off' my batteries.  Last night my available power dropped below 10% usable (I have 628Ah of storage - enough for nearly a week).  Today, I harvested a vast quantity of photons and ended the day at 21%.  I am slowly clawing myself out of the electron deficit.  Except, I need to dump that 9% back into the dinghy battery.

I have two more panels awaiting a solar arch, which is waiting for me to sort out my ground tackle (anchor stuff).  The ground tackle is a safety issue.

Flexible solar panels have a horrible reputation for lasting a few months before they delaminate.  Otherwise the trampolines would be covered in them.  It may come to that except with rigid solar panels that I stow when it is windy.

Until then, I'm without Starlink and catching up with content updates since my blogging platform (Publii) is desktop based and works offline.