10 Years of Donnybrook

I was reminded that this is my tenth season with Donnybrook Sunday morning while getting dressed. The t-shirt I was putting on was made for my first season with Donnybrook.

The shirt idea came at a bar.  I was sitting at my then favorite bar, Joe's on Broadway, with two good friends when we decided to have shirts made.  We had nicknames printed on the back of each. My friend, Todd, still wears his whenever he visits even though the name on the back of his shirt is "puke"--because he gets seasick in a bathtub but still sails with me.

I remember the October day Karen and I looked at Donnybrook for the first time. We'd looked at several other boats but none felt right. Karen a I climbed aboard her and we knew immediately she would be ours. A few weeks later we owned her and the next spring we were sailing her on Lake Michigan.

After 10 years I still enjoy her as much as the first year. I still look forward to seeing her after work. I can't wait to spend the weekend with her and I feel sad to leave her after spending all weekend together. Time away is sometimes nice, but eventually I want to go back to her.  She's a stable part of our family.

It seems like a lot would change in ten years, and it has.  Surprisingly a lot has remained the same. 

• We live at the same address.  Many of our neighbors are still the same.
• We work for the same companies.  Our jobs may have changed or our offices might be on on different floors, but our paychecks come from the same place.
• We still have many of the same friends we did in 2003.

The biggest change?  Our immediate family of 2 (with a cat) is now a family of 4 (without a cat).

Other changes:

• The trees are taller, appliances newer, and paint fresher at hour home.
• We've moved farther apart from some friends and closer to others.
• We drive a newer car.
• I don't mind as much getting up early and enjoy going to bed early.
• I'm 10 years wiser.

In the end, ten years of owning Donnybrook doesn't really feel like a milestone, rather another point on the boat ownership journey.