A while back, I bought an espresso maker, a Delonghi EC155, to be specific. I bought in order to cut down on the amount of money I spend on Starbucks, and so far, the results have been terrific. It does indeed take some time, but it can be such a fun thing to do, especially when you have cravings in the weekend. The best part about is that you can control the amount of sweetness, coffee strength, flavor, etc.. Do check it out.
I buy coffee only when I am outdoors,. However, once I am home, I always make my own coffee. I don't have a proper coffee maker, thus I use instant coffee instead of coffee grounds or coffee beans I boil water, add some sugar and then a one table spoon of coffee. I let it boil for some them and then pour on a cup.
I also hardly ever take coffee outside now since I'm working from home. I usually just drink 3-in-1 coffee just like @Vinaya. Sometimes when I have the time, I buy freshly grinded coffee from my favorite specialty store which sells all kinds of local coffee beans and imported ones too. There's nothing compared to the smell of freshly brewed coffee on a cool cloudy afternoon.
I agree, I don't see why people waste so much money...well yes I do. It's because of many different reasons. I went to starbucks and saw a cookie for close to $3 dollars. I could go to 7 Eleven, and get a 2 pack of cookies for $1 dollar even, which gives me 6 cookies for the same price. Plus if you make your own, you can do much more than you can just by going there. You can make your own menu and have more items to make because your inc control of how many things you can offer yourself, the price of the machine is worth it to me. Plus you can prep everything and make coffee when your ready.
I have to apologize to all Starbucks fans but I think the price of Starbucks is really way too much that it's no longer practical to frequently buy from them when there are other coffee shops around which offer the same service at lower prices. With the hard economic situation of most people right now, I have also noticed that some tend to choose cheaper options to things.
