I get made fun of a fair amount by some of my more right-wing brethren in the service because I am fairly liberal. I also read quite a bit. Recently, I read Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, which really made me think about a few things, including how my choices as a consumer and my living habits as a human being affect our environment.

After reading it, I vowed to find ways to make my life more environmentally friendly, which is sort of hard to do in the middle of a country that's been bombed into the third world where noone has the luxury of giving a flying fsck about the environment. It is, however, one of several factors that turned me on to straight shaving, as I did look at each aspect of my life and try to reduce the number of things I just throw away.

Of course, I'm trying to think of things I can change about my lifestyle at home, too. Some of them are pretty obvious -- I'll replace all the bulbs in my house with CF bulbs, and I already conserve on the lights because I had a father who was obsessed with uninhabited rooms which were lit (they did not make him happy) -- and my wife and I already drive an economy car. These are all changes that most "quick guides to becoming environmentally friendly" suggest. Things like switching to a form of personal grooming which doesn't produce tons of disposed-of razor cartridges, shaving cream cans and aerosol are exactly the kind of thing which is not often suggested. Does anyone have any other tips to add in?

One thing I read about which I liked was investing in some permanent grocery bags so I can stop throwing the plastic ones out. Easy change.