... Colin Beavan, 43, a writer of historical nonfiction, and Michelle Conlin, 39, a senior writer at Business Week, are four months into a yearlong lifestyle experiment they call No Impact.

Its rules are evolving, as Mr. Beavan will tell you, but to date include eating only food (organically) grown within a 250-mile radius of Manhattan; (mostly) no shopping for anything except said food; producing no trash (except compost, see above); using no paper; and, most intriguingly, using no carbon-fueled transportation.

All good, right?

Here's what they gave up:

“We would wake up and call ‘the man,’ ” Ms. Conlin said, “and he would bring us two newspapers and coffee in Styrofoam cups. Sometimes we’d call two men, and get bagels from Bagel Bob’s. For lunch I’d find myself at Wendy’s, with a Dunkin’ Donuts chaser. Isabella would point to guys on bikes and cry: ‘The man! The man!’ ”

Precious!

What makes me squirm is that the family's intentions, while pure, come across somewhat arrogant or smug. Is their goal to live a year while limiting the impact their lives on the environment or is it a fun little urban adventure? Mommy takes a scooter to work or they walk, but they still use the washing machines (and they still have a maid who cleans with an electric vacuum cleaner); darling Isabella can't drink out of a paper cup when they go to a restaurant, yet there's still room in the family's budget for leather boots costing at least a thousand dollars.

Year without toilet paper? More like a year without being pretentious.

Source: The Year Without Toilet Paper - By Penelope Green