Take Short Showers

Benefits
Environmental Benefit: ★★★☆☆
Conserves water, the energy to heat it, and the energy needed to treat the resulting wastewater.

Money Saved: ★★☆☆☆
OK, so we're not talking about much money saved here, but it doesn't cost anything to try, and you do get the energy savings for what it would take to heat that water you saved! (assuming you take hot showers!)

Lifestyle Benefit: ★☆☆☆☆
This is one that Shannon hasn't convinced me to try yet. I like shaving in the shower, and I like having the water running while I do it! Can't really see a lifestyle benefit, but I do try to keep my showers fairly short.

What We're Doing
Sorry, no photo with this one : ) ! Here's what Shannon does: After first rinsing off in the shower, Shannon turns off the water. Next, she lathers up with soap and shampoo. Then when she's ready to rinse again, she turns the water back on. This results in very little water used - especially with a low-flow shower head. If you can skip showering on days when you really don't need to, that's a big savings too. And unless you take long showers, a shower usually uses quite a bit less water than bathing in a tub.

A Little Humor
Al Gore's Green Tips (Edited by Ken Gammage)
My fellow Americans, we are at a crossroads. We can either march together into a clean, "green" world, or we can all continue with our filthy habits and foul our own nests. The choices are ours to make, and I'm here to help you make the right decisions.

#1. Cook with 'gray water.' Clear, fresh water falls from the skies, but it takes the water department a long time, and a lot of energy to make it flow from your home taps. We can conserve precious water by reusing it. Just put pots and pans in the shower with you, and when they're full, use that 'gray' water for cooking. Not in soups or sauces, perhaps, where residual soaps and dirt might affect the flavor. But 'gray water' is ideal for steaming vegetables or boiling potatoes.