Sustainable Living

On route to a peaceful stroll through Pioneer Park, I stopped and spoke with a Man who quite obviously lived out of his mid 80's VW Van.  He had set up a solar panel in the parking lot, and spoke of how he was recharging his batteries.  Maybe it's because it's Earth "Week" or possibly because I'm going through some life transitons at the moment, but it got me to thinking about how unsustainable my current lifestyle is.  Within the last few years I've become more conscious  of eating locally grown organic foods, but that is the extent I've gone to make any sort of difference.  So now I start what may be a 24 hour interest, or a life time goal to learn more about sustainable living.  In this new found quest, I wonder how possible it is to keep up a sense of "normalcy" while also being sustainable.  Where is that fine line between living in a home and charging your batteries using a solar panel in a clearly overpacked mid '80's van?