Eating - There are a number of age-old, unpleasant scenarios that can play themselves out at the dinner table, especially if you try to spring a unexpected tofurkey loaf on your carnivorous guests, or weave a sermon on factory farming into your holiday prayer.

The name of the game here is politeness. If the pilgrims and Indians did it, so can you. If you're interested in finding a locally raised, free-range turkey, awesome. If you wanna provide a turkey alternative, great.

Just remember, Emily Post would never approve of having an animal rights debate at the dinner table. It's easier than ever to buy organic, and no one has to give up their favorite dish. Oh yeah, and if you've recently become a fruititarian, it's polite to let your host know ahead of time.

Travel - When it comes to travel, we're generally talking about three methods: Planes, trains, and automobiles. However, if we were to order them in terms of greenhouse emissions, it'd go: Trains, automobiles, and then planes. Not nearly as catchy is it?

If you live in a part of the country with a well-run commuter rail system (ahem, the Northeast), that's your best bet. You might have to take a taxi from the bus stop to granmother's house, but those travel emissions are still nice and low.

The next best option is carpooling. Consider it a crazy-fun road trip that you took in the most fuel-efficient vehicle available that would comfortably seat your entourage.

When you've gotta fly, you've gotta fly ... sometimes you just have to. If you're flying out of San Francisco, you can purchase travel offsets in the terminal. Sweet.

Shopping - Keep it local. This is one of those vague concepts that can pretty much be applied to everything, but don't let that derail you. It doesn't mean that if someone wants a E-Reader for Xmas, you've gotta find a locally-produced alternative (good luck with that).

Instead, I like to think about some of the local specialties and work back from there. If you're in California, think about who'd like a nice bottle of wine. In Kentucky, think bourbon. In Appalachia, moonshine and so forth (it doesn't have to be alcoholic).

If you plan to do a lot of your shopping online, hit up GoodShop. Through GoodShop, retailers like Best Buy and Apple will donate a portion of your purchases to the green nonprofit of your choice, including Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, and the Nature Conservancy.

See what I'm saying here? You can still have a green holiday without turning into a hippie, commie, or extreme stickler for the rules.