Both - We had both racked up a ton of good karma and we cashed it in and found each other. Well, we had a little help from a random dating app (Coffee meets Bagel). Mike - I found an athletic, smart, attractive and gainfully employed woman who likes to travel! Kate - I found an athletic, smart, attractive and gainfully employed man who likes to travel! Mike - Plus we both like to play cards, games and do crosswords, word puzzles and we were math whizzes! Kate - Hey babe, you forgot to mention that we both are avid runners and both have a lot of stamina. Mike - Are you referring to the fact that we ran into each other's arms? Kate - Well, that too. But I was talking about trail running. Our first date was in Berkeley on July 5th, 2020. In order to make this happen, Mike had to fly up from Mexico and Kate had to drive down from Redding. We had a magical first date and we fell for each other! Kate - You have heard me sing your praises on how punctual you were for that fateful date. You got major oreo points for getting 1,500 miles to meet me right on time! Mike - And then I racked up more Oreo points by making you a deca Oreo cookie. Both - Then we had about 3 weeks of talking and emailing from afar until we were able to do our first getaway weekend. Yes, we move fast! Kate - You brought home-made chocolate covered strawberries - made me feel special that you went to that trouble. Kate - And then when we weren't together, I found a story from you in my email inbox every day around lunchtime. Weekends together soon led to a two-week road trip. We camped on Mt. Massive, summited Mt. Elbert, explored Rocky Mountain, Arches and Bryce Canyon National Parks. Plus, Mike got to meet Rick and Rin. We couldn't stay apart and Kate moved in with Mike in Arcata around Halloween 2020. Kate: You, West and Sierra taught me my new favorite card game – Frustration! Together we ran, hiked and skied in Northern California and Oregon. After a great year in Arcata, came 3.5 years in Mill Valley. We love living here among the redwoods, exploring Mt. Tam and kayaking on the numerous waterways. We will soon be married and begin retired life and we're excited to leave home-ownership chains behind and become full-time world travelers. Follow us on freetraveljunkie.com and find a country to visit us in. Suggest places to co-travel – we'd love to have your company.