Back in August, I wrote about my beginning experiences playing the #minsgame, an idea dreamed up by The Minimalists. On the first of the month, you rid yourself of one item, two items on the second, three on the third, and so on. It’s a way to pare down your possessions, and clear the clutter from your home, in order to make room for what really matters—which usually isn’t a material thing.

I have never been successful at clearing the clutter before because I looked at it as a chore, one that I never seemed to get around to, even by bribing myself. It just wasn’t fun.

It’s different now. It’s is fun, because (1) it’s a game, and (2) you tweet about what you’ve recycled, given away, or dumped, and (3) through twitter, I’ve met some like-minded people all around the world doing the same thing. Some of the #minsgame players post photos; one man arranged his collection of gift boxes on his bed so that they looked like a Mondrian painting. We inspire each other and look forward to hearing about each day’s haul. It gets tough towards the end of the month, and that’s when having a social network really helps.

So I guess what I’m saying is I needed my uncluttering process to be social, competitive, and accountable, and most of all, FUN, which is why #minsgame fits the bill.

So, two months in—I played #minsgame for August and September, my home is less cluttered, and my mindset about hanging onto things just in case has changed. There are a few shelves in my house with nothing on them. Even my husband finds me things to give away.

One thing surprised me. I didn’t resort to culling my massive book collection yet, which will be the hardest for me, along with all my late mother’s things.

I’ve slacked off this month because while on vacation, I caught a dreadful cold, but now that I’m feeling better, I am planning on jumping right back in come November.

If you want to join me on twitter, I’m at @JenniferJStweet.