The economy is in rugged shape, no? In California, we are seeing some of the most brutal and drastic cuts imaginable, and we still do not have a budget. It is stunning, it hurts, and there is no doubt that thousands of adjuncts are directly suffering from these decisions. It’s easy to want to escape the anxiety or worry, so you leave home or the office and go grab a cup of coffee.  (Or a specialty tea or an espresso drink.)

How much is that drink?
How many times per week or month do you buy one?

My favorite mug

Sure, I know–I have my own drinks as well.  I paid just over two bucks for my current cup of coffee so I didn’t have to write this at home. Why would I want to change? I don’t like to do the same thing everyday or week–even if I am feeling broke. It feels like a cheap luxury. But is it really that cheap?

To get a better grip on my finances and feel in control, I track my coffee expenditures. When I smoked cigarettes, I tracked how many I smoked. Rather than have an idea of what I was smoking or spending, I wanted to know exactly how much I was spending.  Usually my estimations of what I spent were far less than what I actually paid for my habit.  The very act of observing and tracking what I smoked and spent slowed me down.

Tracking expenditures is a great way to see where your money is going. This means that you can budget your money more effectively. And if you budget your money, then you know that you are taking active and engaged steps to maintain control of your finances and your life. [read more]

The NY Times published an article which discusses the performance-enhancing nature of caffeine. This seems pretty obvious, but if you ever needed backup to endorse your coffee habit, here you go!

I love coffee. I spend a lot of my time drinking coffee. It’s no surprise, then, that I also spend a lot of my money on it. If you like coffee as much as I do, then this is an attention-worthy tangent: Instructables‘ lesson on how to roast your own.