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January 27, 2008

Starbucks And Metallica

I have not been to Starbucks in 11 days. If you do not know me very well that may not sound like anything noteworthy, but I assure you, it is.

Why?

I have been going to Starbucks every single day for as long as I can remember. Yes I am one of those people although I *do* like to make the distinction that I am not one of the Caramel-Macchiato-5-shot-half-caff-one-Splenda-no-whip types of those people. Mainly because there is no possible way for me to afford the fancier offerings on a daily basis - I get plain bold coffee, venti (yes I say "venti" when I order it), and usually some sort of pastry. But I also get the plain coffee because I really, really like it.
When I try to pinpoint the exact time I began this habit I can only come up with a vague approximation ... something like the last 4.5 - 5 years?? Yeah, something like that.

Recently I've decided to take up a new budgeting plan that did not allow for this daily expenditure. 11 days of no Starbucks comes out to an extra $45.21 in my pocket. It also comes out to ... ::gasp:: $1500 per year. And that doesn't even include the weekend trips with the kids that we take relatively often, which means the total I really spend there yearly is actually more than that.

So you're thinking to yourself, What about withdrawals? Not an issue. The really stupid part about my former Starbucks habit is that I make the world's most kick-awesome coffee at home. I've been making great coffee at home much longer than I've been a Starbucks clone. I even buy Starbucks brand coffee beans. I love grinding coffee beans and brewing a fresh pot! I guess the reason I never did it was because I am SO not a morning person and also apparently SO not a get-the-coffee-ready-the-night-before-and-set-it-to-brew-in-the-morning person. I've always owned coffee pots with that capability.

Despite the fact that I'm doing this at a time when my country is calling upon me to do my part help stimulate the economy, I still feel pretty good about it. But if we somehow still manage to slide into a recession, you can blame it entirely on me.

Oh. Right. And I can explain the not-really-a-video up there. It is one of my favorite songs performed by Metallica; their cover of Budgie's "Breadfan". See? Breadfan. Totally relevant. Plus now you have an excuse to get up out of your chair and headbang all over the place. I HIGHLY recommend that you listen to the entire song. Loudly if possible.

Posted by Jamie at 01:21 PM | Comments (9)

January 18, 2008

Cheating

I'm sure I'll eventually get around to writing a real entry. Until then look at this cool thingie from xkcd:

Posted by Jamie at 11:26 AM | Comments (1)