Minimalist living

Last week I read an article about a couple who had decided to declutter their lives in a major way. The upshot of the story is that one can keep more of their money by minimizing their stuff, and also have more time for non-capitalist pursuits.

The catalyst for this had been an article that challenged readers to live with no more than 100 possessions. Thinking about the stuff currently in my house, I think my shoe collection would kill about half of the 100 item limit. So it's certainly an incentive to think about what you really want around.

I began making a list of 100 gotta haves. So far it includes:

• An iPod
• Kiehl's Silk Hair Groom
• A Sonicaire toothbrush
• My car
• Several cats (let's say four)
• A stereo
• My piano
• A Macbook Pro laptop
• A digital camera
• Two pair of Josef Seibel sandals
• My music CDs (will need to consolidate)
• Assorted slutty lingerie
• A coffee maker
• Central air conditioning