I don’t watch Game of Thrones. I didn’t do the Bucket Challenge. I haven’t tried the Paleo Diet. I don’t care much for Adele. And I didn’t read “The Secret” or “Fifty Shades of Gray.” I began bucking trends in high school and in some ways I’m still that little rebel girl.

I did, however, recently start reading “The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own,” by Joshua Becker. As the title suggests, it advocates freedom from excess belongings. I’ve also noticed a crop of websites dedicated to this idea, and the growing popularity of TV shows like Tiny Houses, which documents hipsters downsizing into often-on-wheels micro dwellings in a quest for financial or geographical freedom. While the Minimalist Movement isn’t new, it’s certainly all the rage.

Setting aside my aversion to all things trendy, I was drawn to the title because despite accumulating a ridiculous amount of stuff in my lifetime, I prefer clean lines, simplicity and order. For the past decade I’ve all but forsaken recreational shopping and often imagined purging our home of every needless knickknack and unused item. What began as a décor preference, though, has evolved into a more spiritual aspiration. A desire to cleanse from the outside in.

Buying another book felt ironic, since it would then become another possession. I downloaded it instead. After two chapters I was ready to jump on the bandwagon.

One thing I like is that there are no rules for what constitutes minimalist living. I’m sure there’s spirited competition among purists. Some wander-lusting enthusiasts choose homelessness and carry their sparse possessions in backpacks. But Becker points out that the real idea is to find the level of freedom that feels right to you; his own family practices what he calls rational minimalism.

So this weekend, I posed a bold challenge to myself: give away, throw away or recycle 1,000 (or more) items in 100 days. When I shared this with my family, the responses were less enthusiastic than I’d expected.

• Hubby (the eloquent packrat): “What?!? That’s fine, as long as you don’t touch any of my s***. Why don’t you start with the freezer that won’t close because it has too much crap in it?”
• Daughter #1 (the skeptic and analyst): “You realize that’s 10 items a day, right?” (I birthed her just so someone could school me in basic math.)
• Daughter #2 (the shopaholic): “We don’t have to be a part of this, do we?” (says the girl with a nail polish collection to rival any salon)
• Daughter #3 (the snark-asm queen): “Go, Mom. Have fun with that.” (notice the lack of exclamation points)

I forged ahead, anyway. I planned to start July 1, but was restless to purge. So last night I tackled the freezer, as Hubby so lovingly suggested. I tossed 18 unopened, too-freezer-burned-to-eat items and then pledged to buy and waste less, especially with all three girls off to college in August.

This morning I left 24 pieces of clothing on the porch for a charity pick-up. I can already tell that finding 958 more items in 98 days won’t be difficult.

I’ll post progress reports on Facebook. If the challenge speaks to you, join me! Like the movement itself, there are no rules (or prizes). If you toss a box of old markers, you decide if it counts as one item or eight. Be sure to share how it’s going. After all, what fun is trend-following if you can’t talk about it?

P.S.  If you want more inspiration, Becker also has a great website and Facebook page, both titled Becoming Minimalist.