In the fall of 2020, Joey was deciding between a job in Los Angeles or a job in Bloomington, Indiana. Sanjna was entering her second year of medical school at Indiana University. Joey took the Bloomington job, not knowing anything about the place, nor that he would meet his soulmate just a few months later.

Through a dating app (hey it was COVID), we started talking about random shared interests like DIY projects, travel and exploring the outdoors. Soon, we met up at a nearby coffee shop (s/o Soma in Bloomington Indiana!) some time in the afternoon. We stayed so long talking that the café closed and we were practically shivering on the sidewalk before we finally went home. Turns out, we lived just a block away from each other. Hangouts shortly became a regular thing. Sanjna would come to Joey's apartment for dinner and a movie, and Joey would bike down to Sanjna's for board games and one night he find out Sanjna really likes dancing to loud music in her living room.

From there, things always felt easy between us. We'd take long walks through Switchyard Park in Bloomington, bonded over our shared love of the outdoors, and creative pursuits like photography. Some of our earliest and most cherished memories together involve a camping trip to Michigan where we spent hours hunting for rocks along the water, sorting them by color and shape. It was simple but it completely consumed us and it felt like it was our own little world.

Over the years, we've built a life full of adventure. We've taken a leaf-peeping road trip through the northeast, explored Portugal, moved to Colorado in 2023 for Sanjna's residency, and most recently, traveled to India together to meet much of Sanjna's family. Joey proposed in February 2025 in Santa Barbara, California. This summer, we'll be traveling to France for pretty much the sole purpose of talking about food together as we eat.

We often joke that we were the same person in middle school and would have been instant best friends, but we're glad we found each other when we did. Being together has always felt like home: a place where we can be completely ourselves, talk about anything, and laugh about everything. In fact, that pretty much summarizes our lives together: Joey talking nonstop, and Sanjna always making Joey laugh.