In noble metals a patina of free electrons extends out into free space and vanishes within a fraction of an atomic diameter. We discuss the possibility and consequences of the existence of such a free electron layer, acting as an epsilon-near-zero medium. Just as classical macroscopic electrodynamics cannot discern either individual atoms or field fluctuations between atoms, it is similarly unable of discriminating the rapid decay of the free electron spill-out density within a distance that is less than an atomic diameter. The best one can do is treat the boundary as a layer of free charge density having thickness equal to a single spatial discretization step of unknown average density, equivalent to a delta-function. Under these conditions we predict that if this boundary layer exists it will display enhanced pump absorption and decreased nonlinear thresholds. Finally, we will discuss a new formulation of radiation reaction that supplants the Abraham-Lorenz classical theory and applies to non-relativistic electrons of finite size. The introduction of an explicit reaction force in the Newtonian equation of motion leads to a new hydrodynamic equation that offers novel insight on the influence of damping in generic plasmas, metal-based and dielectric nanostructures.