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Counterpoint: The debate is framed as "$5 a day is a waste--put it into your piggy bank every day and drink office sludge instead". I instead say that yes, th

Counterpoint: The debate is framed as "$5 a day is a waste--put it into your piggy bank every day and drink office sludge instead". I instead say that yes, the office coffee still tastes like fertilizer, but I still think $5 a day for a latte is waste because I can make some excellent coffee at my desk for about a dollar a day using an inexpensive French Press, a hand-grinder (or grinding the beans that morning at home), and some whole beans from your favorite hipster coffee shop. And the 5 minutes it takes start-to-finish (1 minute for prep, 4 minutes for steeping) is probably less time than it will take to slip by the coffee shop, stand in line, and get your order. But that's just me. If they're one of those people who uses the coffee/espresso/latte as a caffeine-delivery mechanism and rely on being a frozen whipped-cream confection with chocolate and a little coffee in it to make it palatable, then my self-brew method won't help them.

threwawasy1228 8y ago
I think you are reading too much into what is supposed to be an intrinsically silly example. For instance, I pay $1.25 for a large coffee nearly every day from my favorite hipster coffee place for a good organic coffee every lunch. Yet I still am barely scraping by with a very high salary for the area that I live in, and I'm still barely able to actually save. If I didn't buy the coffee at all or if I liked sugary confection-coffees that cost $10 a day, it makes literally no significant difference in my coming any closer to owning a home.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
falcolas 8y ago
You're exchanging time for money. It's a highly common tradeoff. Prep, brewing, and cleanup amounts can work up to around $3-4 of opportunity cost for a tech professional. Not to mention, french press coffee is not quite equivalent to a latte. Also, I recommend 5 minutes steeping, personally. ;)
- ineedasername 8y ago
  Not sure how much time you save. Standing on line and waiting for that latte would take a comparable amount of time to what it takes me to make my own cup at work.
  - falcolas 8y ago
    Getting one during the work hours does seem a bit odd to me. Before work or over lunch, however, seems much more reasonable.
    - adamisom 8y ago
      Ok, but even then, surely it takes about as much time? The time component of having to go somewhere + get your order + get back is mysteriously ignored all. the. time. Not just with coffee, but with making your own food. Like, you don't want to meal prep it takes too much time--but then you probably spend more time overall getting lunch every day instead! Especially if you have the luxury 'need' for variety every. single. meal. It drives me a little bit crazy.
      - falcolas 8y ago
        > Ok, but even then, surely it takes about as much time? Sure, but it's on your own time, not your employer's time (at least, that's how I read "I have it at my desk"). That said, I will solidly defend the notion that not spending a solid N hours at your desk is a good thing. Stepping away from your desk on your lunch hour, whether it's to purchase a latte, a lunch, or to eat a homemade meal in a nearby park, is a good thing.
  - puranjay 8y ago
    But then how will you tell everyone on Instagram that Starbucks got your name wrong again
- dsfyu404ed 8y ago
  >Prep, brewing, and cleanup amounts can work up to around $3-4 of opportunity cost for a tech professional. I disagree. The average tech professional is salaried, not billing hourly. It takes about the same amount of time to fill and plug in the percolator or operate a kurig as it does to stand in line and get coffee made for you. Likewise the opportunity cost is nearly $0 There is no economic rationalization for the overwhelming majority of prepared coffee bought by white collar professionals. It is a pure luxury expense.
ssalazar 8y ago
Maybe for some, but French press != espresso drinks; a really well-made cappuccino or latte is something that requires equipment and attention to detail that isn't practical for small office use.
8ytecoder 8y ago
I have an aeropress and use a grinder and buy "hipster" coffee shop beans. I use a french press to make the froth. I love the latte I make. However, I still spend an awful lot on lattes. 1) I like variety 2) It's not practical to this at the office kitchen and office coffee sucks. 3) I like getting out of the office and for some reason "getting coffee" is an easy way for me to that. Also, on the broader point - savings do matter. It's like trying to lose weight. You can't lose weight by simply working out and not making any changes to the diet. However, having to control all these impulses and every little temptation, is taxing on the brain. I can only speak for myself here, it affects my cognition. I can splurge a bit and free up my mind to focus on the things that matter more. It's taxing to always stay in control and trying to optimize every single thing.
asdff 8y ago
And you can cut the fat out of your caffeine consumption too, both in time and money. I take caffeine pills now over coffee (mostly to combat coffee breath and the guaranteed poop 20 minutes after drinking). 200mg, equal to a grande I figure, 5 cents a pill, and maybe 20 seconds to plop one into my hand then my mouth. The speed and price is a boon for me, but also how compact the dose becomes. I can take it anywhere whenever I need it with just my palm; no need to plan for a coffee break. If coworkers are going out after work, I'll take one at 5, then stick a couple in my back pocket to keep the night fueled 4 hours at a time. When I wake up early for a morning run, I'll take one and hit snooze and fall back asleep, then by the time the alarm finishes snoozing I awake already caffeinated and eager to run at the crack of dawn. In college I would take one in the middle of lecture if I started to nod off. Really changed my life.
- 01100011 8y ago
  That's cool but you miss out on things like quercetin: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0197458016301154 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S019745801...
bubblewrap 8y ago
In my office, I don't have pretty Baristas making the coffee for me, and I also can't bask in the sunshine watching the passersbys.
onlyrealcuzzo 8y ago
The amount of time people are willing to spend waiting in lines continuously amazes me. And for food and drinks, no less.

threwawasy1228 8y ago

I think you are reading too much into what is supposed to be an intrinsically silly example. For instance, I pay $1.25 for a large coffee nearly every day from my favorite hipster coffee place for a good organic coffee every lunch. Yet I still am barely scraping by with a very high salary for the area that I live in, and I'm still barely able to actually save. If I didn't buy the coffee at all or if I liked sugary confection-coffees that cost $10 a day, it makes literally no significant difference in my coming any closer to owning a home.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

falcolas 8y ago

You're exchanging time for money. It's a highly common tradeoff. Prep, brewing, and cleanup amounts can work up to around $3-4 of opportunity cost for a tech professional. Not to mention, french press coffee is not quite equivalent to a latte. Also, I recommend 5 minutes steeping, personally. ;)

ineedasername 8y ago
Not sure how much time you save. Standing on line and waiting for that latte would take a comparable amount of time to what it takes me to make my own cup at work.
- falcolas 8y ago
  Getting one during the work hours does seem a bit odd to me. Before work or over lunch, however, seems much more reasonable.
  - adamisom 8y ago
    Ok, but even then, surely it takes about as much time? The time component of having to go somewhere + get your order + get back is mysteriously ignored all. the. time. Not just with coffee, but with making your own food. Like, you don't want to meal prep it takes too much time--but then you probably spend more time overall getting lunch every day instead! Especially if you have the luxury 'need' for variety every. single. meal. It drives me a little bit crazy.
    - falcolas 8y ago
      > Ok, but even then, surely it takes about as much time? Sure, but it's on your own time, not your employer's time (at least, that's how I read "I have it at my desk"). That said, I will solidly defend the notion that not spending a solid N hours at your desk is a good thing. Stepping away from your desk on your lunch hour, whether it's to purchase a latte, a lunch, or to eat a homemade meal in a nearby park, is a good thing.
- puranjay 8y ago
  But then how will you tell everyone on Instagram that Starbucks got your name wrong again
dsfyu404ed 8y ago
>Prep, brewing, and cleanup amounts can work up to around $3-4 of opportunity cost for a tech professional. I disagree. The average tech professional is salaried, not billing hourly. It takes about the same amount of time to fill and plug in the percolator or operate a kurig as it does to stand in line and get coffee made for you. Likewise the opportunity cost is nearly $0 There is no economic rationalization for the overwhelming majority of prepared coffee bought by white collar professionals. It is a pure luxury expense.

ssalazar 8y ago

Maybe for some, but French press != espresso drinks; a really well-made cappuccino or latte is something that requires equipment and attention to detail that isn't practical for small office use.

8ytecoder 8y ago

I have an aeropress and use a grinder and buy "hipster" coffee shop beans. I use a french press to make the froth. I love the latte I make. However, I still spend an awful lot on lattes. 1) I like variety 2) It's not practical to this at the office kitchen and office coffee sucks. 3) I like getting out of the office and for some reason "getting coffee" is an easy way for me to that. Also, on the broader point - savings do matter. It's like trying to lose weight. You can't lose weight by simply working out and not making any changes to the diet. However, having to control all these impulses and every little temptation, is taxing on the brain. I can only speak for myself here, it affects my cognition. I can splurge a bit and free up my mind to focus on the things that matter more. It's taxing to always stay in control and trying to optimize every single thing.

asdff 8y ago

And you can cut the fat out of your caffeine consumption too, both in time and money. I take caffeine pills now over coffee (mostly to combat coffee breath and the guaranteed poop 20 minutes after drinking). 200mg, equal to a grande I figure, 5 cents a pill, and maybe 20 seconds to plop one into my hand then my mouth. The speed and price is a boon for me, but also how compact the dose becomes. I can take it anywhere whenever I need it with just my palm; no need to plan for a coffee break. If coworkers are going out after work, I'll take one at 5, then stick a couple in my back pocket to keep the night fueled 4 hours at a time. When I wake up early for a morning run, I'll take one and hit snooze and fall back asleep, then by the time the alarm finishes snoozing I awake already caffeinated and eager to run at the crack of dawn. In college I would take one in the middle of lecture if I started to nod off. Really changed my life.

01100011 8y ago
That's cool but you miss out on things like quercetin: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0197458016301154 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S019745801...

bubblewrap 8y ago

In my office, I don't have pretty Baristas making the coffee for me, and I also can't bask in the sunshine watching the passersbys.

onlyrealcuzzo 8y ago

The amount of time people are willing to spend waiting in lines continuously amazes me. And for food and drinks, no less.