I met Joe on Hinge one summer in 2020—right in the thick of the pandemic. I’d never really done online dating before, but with everything shut down, I figured ‘why not?’. He turned out to be my very first online date—and somehow, we just got lucky. Joe was only in San Diego for a short time, completing pilot training, and I thought it’d be nothing more than a short chapter. But then something changed. I showed him my favorite San Diego spots, he introduced me to the L.A. he loved, and he taught me how to ski, something I’d always wanted to try. Joe would fly down in his plane to pick me up and we would fly back and forth between San Diego and Torrance which made long distance feel not just doable, but kind of magical. Then there was Bobo— Joe's dog. I became Bobo's other favorite human being, he became my personal shadow and I became his “new mom,” which became one of my favorite titles. We met each other’s friends and blended our worlds even more. We met each others' families within the first year, and celebrated our first relationship anniversary in Lake Tahoe. By fall 2021 he asked me to move in, and by January 2022 I had made the move to Torrance. That’s when our real life together began. With much sadness, we had to say goodbye to Bobo recently. He passed away peacefully in his sleep after a long-fought battle with lymphoma. We carry his memory on with us into our new life. We’ve been incredibly fortunate to have traveled to so many places—from San Francisco, all the Hawaiian islands, Denver, Salt Lake City, Mammoth, Tahoe, Tokyo, Dublin, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, Poland, Cancun... the list goes on. Joe is the best person to travel with—adventures together are one of the many reasons I fell in love with him. We come from different cultural backgrounds, and while we haven’t always walked the same path, we somehow understand each other in the ways that matter the most. We might not have been raised the same way, but we can relate, understand, and connect in ways that keep us grounded. We always feel safe talking openly—nothing’s off-limits—and the deep respect we share is what really shapes us into a strong, balanced couple. And now? Joe’s a Captain for Skywest flying passengers everyday, and I’ll be finishing Occupational Therapy Assistant school this April and get my license to practice sometime mid-late 2026. We’re so ready to launch and grow into our careers, fully support one another, and write the next chapter of our lives—together. We are so excited, and can’t wait to celebrate with everyone!