It’s funny how life works sometimes. Natalie had wanted to live in Chicago for quite some time. Because of this desire she was armed with loads of information on the city such as where to find free wine tastings (I love this about her) and already knew the public transportation system quite well. I, on the other hand, had grown up swearing off big cities. Too cramped, crowded, scary, wrong sports teams, blah blah insert your own big city stereotype here... It’s funny how a person can have such a negative image of something without having really ever experienced it (I rarely ever visited Chicago growing up). My stance on the issue softened as I went to college even though I still never really pictured myself living in Chicago. Then came Natalie’s summer internship after we graduated, our move to the city, and oddly enough I began hearing the lyrics “hey Chicago what do you say...” running through my head: we were city people.
Since moving to Chicago, we’ve spent considerable time exploring ways to make our lives healthier and more sustainable. Natalie is a self-proclaimed environmentalist and has been for some time now. I hadn’t really thought like that until I met Natalie. (It’s amazing how much more environmentally conscious you become when you have to pay your own utilities, but I digress). Together, we’ve begun reading anything and everything about how to live a sustainable life. This quest for knowledge has positively influenced every aspect of our lives. We have begun running and biking, utilizing the CTA, we are eating healthier, more environmentally friendly meals, we recycle and reuse, we donate, and we buy used. As a by-product of our “healthy lifestyle” thinking, our financial lives have improved too.
Natalie and I certainly aren’t doing everything perfectly and we’re okay with that. This is the start of a journey, of a lifestyle that we hope to carry with us for many years. We hope to learn and discover as much as we can, and make small changes as our knowledge increases. Our goal is to simply live healthier. We are excited to share our “green” journey with you.
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