PEORIA MAGAZINE June 2023

TWENTY SOMETHING

AS A NEW HOMEOWNER, REDUCING MY ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT

BY KATIE FALEY ILLUSTRATION BY SCOTT SHEPLER

H ave you seen those Progres sive insurance commercials about young homeowners turning into their parents? It’s happening to me. As a first-time homeowner, it’s like I’ve suddenly entered into Kafka’s Metamor phosis . But instead of waking up one day as a beetle, I’m waking up as my parents. I CAN MAKE SMALL LIFESTYLE CHANGES TO REDUCE MY CARBON FOOTPRINT With the weather warming up, I have been getting my yard ready for my first season of landscaping and gardening. All of a sudden, I’m caring about the things that my parents have cared about for years: planting flowers, having the

perfect straight line in the mowed grass, pulling weeds, etc. With homeownership has also come a sense of responsibility. Now that I’m creating my own garbage and paying my own bills, I can see exactly how much waste I’m creating and how much energy I’m using. I’ve realized that I can make small lifestyle changes to reduce my carbon footprint. There’s not much I understand about kids these days — there I go sounding like my parents again — but I do get their passion for creating a brighter future for our environment.

And what’s more local and organic than food grown in the backyard? I have wild ideas about everything I want to grow, and if I had multiple acres of land, I’d grow it all. But since I have a modest backyard and have never attempted to grow fruits and vegetables, I’m starting with just a couple. When I was little, my dad grew a few rows of corn behind our garage. Before my offer was even accepted by the seller of my home, I was already planning where I’d plant the corn and continue the tradition my dad set forth in the ‘90s. COMPOSTING The former homeowner started a compost pile in the backyard, which I gratefully inherited. Not only did it do a small part for the environment while

STARTING A GARDEN AND EATING LOCAL

Being the good millennial that I am, I love the idea of eating local and organic.

82 JUNE 2023 PEORIA MAGAZINE