AE - Week 1

I chose to reduce my consumption of meat, use less electricity and water, and leave my car at home for my Lifestyle Project. Thus far, the results have been interesting.
Surprisingly, the easiest change has been giving up eating meat. In my Environmental Economics class we're reading a book called "Just Food", and it contains an entire chapter dedicated to how energy-inefficient meat production is. The author even goes so far as to say "Being an environmentalist that eats meat is like being a philanthropist who doesn't give to charity." I heard the message loud and clear, and although I'm definitely a carnivore, I've found that I enjoy the different tastes when I eat fruits, vegetables, and grains in place of meat.
Leaving the car at home wasn't too bad this week, though I can foresee it becoming difficult during the next two weeks. I have been increasingly mindful of where I've been traveling, and I make a point to always carpool outside of the modification days.
Minding my electricity and water use was more difficult than I had originally thought, in part because of my roommate. I feel responsible for his consumption as well as my own since we share the same space, and he tends to leave the lights and television on when he leaves the room (!!). Knowing that, I try to leave the window blinds open for as long as possible to let the natural light in so he won't need to hit the light switch. I'll have to get creative in cutting back on water consumption, namely because I already take pretty swift showers. I won't have to shave for a while, so really the only ways I can cut back is when washing my hands or brushing my teeth. I've started to use hand sanitizer in lieu of soap and water, though I won't give up brushing my teeth (ha ha). This one is going to be interesting...