We’re Alli and TJ, a traveling twosome dedicated to exploring the world one adventure at a time. We’re high school sweethearts who have spent the past 9 years together going to school, exploring the Pacific North West of the United States, and starting our careers. In 2017, the two of us decided to take the plunge… so we quit our 9 to 5’s to travel the world full-time and share our adventures with others in hopes of inspiring them to chase their dreams! We purchased one way tickets to SE Asia with an end goal of reaching every corner of the world and growing our relationship every step of the way. Here are 23 fun facts about us!
1). When we’re not camping or traveling we love setting up our tent in the living room or sleeping on the deck under the stars from time to time. Staycations are fun too!
2). We’d love to have “green thumbs” but our plants and flowers seem to do much better when we leave them alone.
3). We’re high school sweethearts from small-town Ashland, Oregon where we both developed our love for the outdoors, exploration, and the Pacific North West.
4). TJ went to the University of Oregon (Scooooo Ducks!) and got his BS in Business with concentrations in Entrepreneurship & Marketing while Alli went to Willamette University and got her BA in International Studies. She’s also fluent in Spanish from growing up in Mexico City.
5). Growing up we felt (or at least Alli did!) a bit like two characters from a young adult novel. TJ was a wild-land firefighter and Alli was a lifeguard; walking around town in uniform together was quite fun.
6). We love music festivals and have been to SnowGlobe, Coachella, Sasquatch, Lightening in a Bottle, Wulapalooza, and Bay Area Vides (so far!). Speaking of… regardless of if we are out on the town, at a concert, or just in our living room, you can find us out there dancing whether the music is playing or not.
7). Together we’ve been to 6 continents and are planning to hit the 7th soon – we’ll make sure to pack plenty of warm clothes for this one. Can you guess what it is?
8). Alli’s favorite exploration thus far took place in the Atacama Desert in Chile (the driest desert in the world!) when she and two friends decided to rent bikes and ride out to La Garganta del Diablo (Devil’s Throat) to hike through the cavern. Inside jokes, endless laughter, 7,000 meters of pedaling, and the three canine companions they picked up along the way made this an adventure she’ll never forget.
9). TJ’s favorite exploration thus far actually happened while on the job. He was working his first season as a wild land firefighter for the Oregon Department of Forestry. A huge lightning storm crashed down throughout Southern Oregon and Northern California starting dozens of fires throughout the region. TJ and his crew were flown in on a helicopter to scout and contain one of the fires near our hometown. It was a grueling 24 hours out in the forest, but his crew put the fire to bed and TJ came back with a soot covered face, tired body, and an awesome story to tell.
10). We like to cook, and we LOVE to eat. When we are not traveling, we like to meal prep on the weekends so we have healthy food for the week. If we don’t, we tend to fall in the trap of eating delicious pasta and pizza every night. We are very excited to eat our way through each country we visit.
11). Guilty pleasures: craft beer (TJ is an IPA snob and Alli loves the dark beers), chocolate lava cakes, french bread (well, let’s be honest – any kind of bread), manjar, pizza, “Gammy’s” meatballs, crunchwrap supremes, tacos, mac and cheese, cajeta, and those little biscoff cookies you get on a lot of American airlines.
12). TJ’s favorite way to relax & unwind is a night in with a couple of friends, some tasty brews, and a Ducks or Blazers game. Or, in his hammock with a good book.
13). Alli’s favorite way to relax & unwind is to curl up with a blanket and a pot of tea reading a book or watching Netflix. Or, enjoying a walk outside and yoga with friends during the warmer months.
14). We tend to stumble upon some of our favorite places by leaving the map behind and seeing where our feet take us. Like the time we shared a weekend on the Uba river with just a herd of horned goats. #WeekendWarriors for the win!
15). We live a fit lifestyle and have played sports all our lives (football, baseball, wrestling, dance, cross-country, volleyball, tennis and rowing). Now we enjoy HIIT classes, half marathons, Zumba, Spin classes, partner yoga, and spending time using our bodies outside. Plus, we’re always up for trying something new!
16) Some time down the line, when we are ready to take a break from travel and settle down, we want to adopt a canine companion named Trek to join us on all of our weekend adventures.
17). We love making vision boards and seeing our inspiration everyday.
18). We think spending time together is wonderful, but spending time apart is great too. Part of being in a relationship is growing together as a couple while also having the space to explore and grow individually.
19). Alli is quite skilled with a needle and thread. Whether it’s making dresses from scratch, or tailoring TJ’s work shirts and hiking pants, Alli loves sewing away on her machine. #DateASeamstress
20). Abandoned railroad bridge? Old warehouse? Great big trees? We love spending time outdoors exploring, but if we’ve got something to climb we’re even happier campers.
21). While we prefer outdoor explorations any day (ok most days!), we still love to Netflix and chill… we’re big fans of The 100, Quantico, Containment, The Fosters (thanks to Alli!), Fugitivos, Madam Secretary, How to Get Away with Murder, Scandal, Graceland, Prison Break, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and sometimes goofy kids movies.
22). Weekends jam packed with hiking, exploring new cities, getting our exercise in, and taking occasional vacations weren’t enough for us. So, we quit our jobs and decided to live a life of travel and exploration. First stop? A year in SE Asia!
23). Some future adventures we want to embark on include building a tiny house together and driving an RV across the US visiting all the National Parks and other amazing sites in between.
Want to know more? Visit our About page! If you’re already an avid reader and want to learn how you can help support Life Is Meant For Exploring you can find everything you need to know right here!
Share this: Let us know if you have any questions in the comments and be sure to share the stories of your adventures with us on Facebook and Instagram (tag @LifeIsMeantForExploring we will see it). Happy exploring!
Life Is Meant For Exploring 
Published by