AIBU to spend £84 on takeaway coffees in three weeks?

[CheeseMongrel]

So I’ve checked my online banking today to add up how much I’ve spent on takeaway coffee since I last got paid.

84 bloody pound

What on earth?

I have been going more due to not having much else to do but Christ that is a serious waste of money.

I was planning to go tomorrow but now I can’t justify it.

Not sure what other things I can treat myself to (that isn’t a massive waste) to keep me going .. any suggestions?

Has anyone else had a bigger waste of money than that lately?

@CheeseMongrel £114.

ONE HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN POUNDS ON GREGGS!!!

Of course the very first thing I did was go "Oh my god, they've clearly charged me at least twice every time" - but no on closer observation I really did spend £6-£7 every time I went and I went most days during the week

I’m WFH so it’s giving me a reason to actually leave the house that’s why I’m not sure having a coffee machine would help. I’d still want to be able to go out somewhere.

I just go for a walk round the neighbourhood with my coffee in a reusable cup, although in song weather it can feel a bit miserable!

Not a problem at all if you can afford it. Having a coffee out is one of my life’s pleasures. I spend a lot on it but then would have no interest whatsoever on an expensive piece of jewellery, an expensive car, designer clothes etc. Life’s short, enjoy it as much as you can, especially at the moment when not much is open!

@GlummyMcGlummerson hahahahaha that’s amazing and I’m really impressed. What on earth were you buying?

@nanbread I’m going to try doing that. I’ll give a whirl with instant and if that’s not snazzy enough I’ll be putting a coffee machine on my Christmas list.

If you do the pret deal, check the opening hours of branches that you're likely to use.
I started it, then discovered that all the branches near me close at 2pm weekdays, and don;t open at weekends at all.

I figured it would be a good way to encourage me to get exercise at the weekend - go for a walk, get a tea or coffee, walk home - but then I discovered just how many miles I'd need to walk!

sounds like a lot to me but I don't like coffee, and as a teacher stuck on a school campus all day, I don't have the option to go out to buy hot drinks!
But it's up to you really. If you can afford it and you don't want to save the money for anything else then there's no problem. I can think of a lot of things I'd rather spend 84 pounds on than any kind of drink, but we're all different.

Buy a cafetière and nip to Aldi for their Italian roast, make it strong, put half in a mug with half warm milk if you like it milky (less milk for stronger) and if you like it frothy get a frother from Amazon. You can pay for the equipment, the coffee and the milk for the year from one months spend!

I don't have a coffee habit so the £84 sounds cray to me but I do have a bit of a shopping habit so can't judge. I love bargain hunting in the markets and the attic is bursting.

all the mentions of flasks - anyone know where you can get a smallish traditional glass vacuum flask?

The metal ones don't seem to keep things hot for very long, and all the faff of warming them up first. I searched on google for ages and gave up.

@CheeseMongrel a fizzy drink, a doughnut or cupcake, baguette, and a sausage roll or pasty

It also happens to be the month I put half a stone on (which I luckily managed to lose). Can't imagine why.

DP and I worked out that we'd spent £120 on take out coffee and cake a few months back. Both of us now work from home, we're stuck at a desk all day and this was our guilty pleasure.

DP then decided that to 'save' money, we'd be better off buying a coffee machine. £550 later on a Sage bean to cup, we're certainly buying less coffee from the cafe than we were before. Even with the extra milk and coffee beans we now buy, it still works out about 60p per coffee we make at home, rather than £2.90 each.

I still get a take out over the weekend (I tell myself that it's to learn the art of watching them foam the milk....it's harder than it looks )

Earlier this year I started totalling up our spend on Starbucks, Costa and MacDonalds. Some months it was heading towards £200! To be fair DH works away from home a lot at odd hours and I was travelling a lot too. I bought a re usable cup, Aeropress and hipster coffee subscription after that and we're still quids in. I can completely see where your £84 came from.
Whatever the ups and downs of Covid it's saved us a fortune on coffees.

If you are buying coffee then buy it in an independent coffee shop not one of the big chains

Tbh working from home is dull and dh and I treat ourselves to lunch out 3 times a week. By out I mean we walk to one of the local coffee shops and get a takeaway.

Feels good to get out the house and still way less than dh would spend on his train fare every month and hopefully going some way t
I keeping our local town alive

@IceCreamAndCandyfloss why are you assuming OP is in an English lockdown? She could be anywhere in the world (and kindly converted her currency for us). I'm in a low tier area of rural Scotland and we have lots of things allowed to be open, including coffee shops.

I work with people who walk at 6 am from home for an hour and work a 12 hour shift and then walk home again to save £4 bus fare ..so yes I do think that you are very lucky to have that extra money.

Buy a coffee filter. I spent £15 on one about 6 years ago and even proper wanky coffee beans come to less than a quid for a strong 400ml coffee.

I don't think it's that bad if you enjoy it and can afford it. Pre lockdown I used to go to coffee shops several times a week with friends, the kids or on my own. I enjoyed the experience and as a social life it's not expensive.

Now we can only get takeaway and can't travel, I must admit I'm not going to coffee shops. I have a bean to cup machine and a flask so I can make coffee the way I like it and take it out with me.i do fritter money on other things though.

I would have to walk 18 miles to my nearest pret.

I've spent this on takeaways in a weekend. Not being funny, but I work hard for my and I'll spend it on whatever I damned well please lol keep having your coffees if it makes you happy, who cares? Life is short, enjoy your money! You can't take it with you.

A friend of mine was constantly worrying about money. When she went to the supermarket she would count every single item to ensure she wasn't overspending. She was comfortable financially, but just cautious. She died at the age of 36, and it made me think about how stupid it was for her to worry about something as trivial as money when she should have just been enjoying spending it in the short time she had.

If you can afford it and it gives you pleasure why not?

Meh, it's all relative.

Pre DC I had loads of disposable income because DH and I were both relatively high earners and weren't particularly interested in the future.

I used to get nice coffee and a granola bowl every morning on my way to work, sushi or something for my lunch, and most nights after work I would either be meeting a friend for dinner, or DH and I would go and eat at a swanky restaurant and order a £100 bottle of wine. I'd get taxis everywhere. I probably spent about £2500 a month on stuff like this. It was fine because I could comfortably afford it.

Now we're on 1 income, we've got DC, school fees to pay, and we're saving to buy a house. I count every penny. I wouldn't even agree to meet a friend for a $5 coffee without checking the bank balance first.

Sounds like you aren't comfortable spending this much money on coffee, so I would cut back. Start putting the money into a savings account instead, and then spend it on something you actually care about.

Buy coffee syrup to make you're own Starbucks coffees. Loads of places sell them online for £7-15 per litre so you can still look forward to a sweet treat.

@icecreamcrackers

I obviously charge far to little in my cafe/takeaway. £1 a coffee and £1.50 for latte or cappuccino.

Try a smaller shop to reduce your spend maybe?

Good God

If it's a half decent proper coffee then you definitely don't charge enough if you want to stay in business!!

Mind you I'mLondon & SE, so expect to be totally fleeced!!

Thus was a bad thread to open at this time of night!!

McDonald’s coffee is 99p.

@Alyssasbackrolls

If you can afford it and it gives you pleasure why not?

This, TBH. Life's too short to drink substandard coffee you made at home