On November 11th 2011 I closed on the purchase of a Mariner 36: Aisling. She was built in 1981 for Tim Clements who took spectacular care of her for 30 years. The name - which I am frequently explaining to people - comes from Gaelic meaning “a dream, a vision” and according to some websites it is pronounced “Ash-ling.” I’m not much of an Irishman or Scottsman, but I appreciate the meaning, and absolutely keeping the name. My own dream will be different from Tim’s, but the name works well.

Many things added up to the realization that this boat is a perfect fit for me, she is sized just right to have company, or to live aboard with a comfortable amount of room, but not too big to single hand. The equipment list is quite extensive, Aisling is fitted out to travel, although my family despises the idea of me sailing away and leaving them, but I am confident we will find a way to make it work. The headroom is perfect I am 6’2” tall and needed a boat that wouldn't force me to slouch any more than I already do.

Tim bought the domain Mariner36.com to use as a sales billboard for Aisling, but I decided that it might be the perfect place for me to keep track of my findings. There are no major projects to start, so I’ll keep track of the smaller ones by the time a major refitting is in order this should be a good place to document it.