Month of Savings - Day 8

I love coffee. Most days I drink one or two cups. Other days I may want three or four. I drink organic, fair trade coffee made from green beans I roast myself. I get my beans from U-Roast-Em. Now I did not go out and buy a fancy coffee roaster. I use a popcorn popper purchased from Walgreens. The catch is that the popper must have a solid bottom. If it has one of the mesh ones, the chaff from the beans will fall down in it and catch the popper on fire. I do not know this from personal experience. Reading about it was more than enough. The cost of the green, organic, fair trade beans is slightly more than your average supermarket coffee, but it is so very good. I also like knowing that the beans are fair trade. I hate to think of someone working in horrid conditions so I can have my caffeine fix.

My first money savings tip is that you can have luxury items on a budget. I consider roasting my own coffee a luxury. It sounds even more decadent than buying coffee at a coffee shop. I ordered a small pack of several different kinds to try so I would know what I liked best. My top three beans are Mexican, Guatamalen, and Nicaraguan. Once I knew what I liked I could order in bulk and save even more.

On the days when I drink the first two cups and decide I want a little more, I do not throw out the grounds from the first batch. Instead I add in only half of the grounds for a second batch on top of the old grounds. So if I used two Tablespoons for the first pot, I would add one Tablespoon on top of the previous grounds for pot number two. Make sense? You are not losing any flavor. The second pot will still taste just as good, but you have cut the cost in half. Try it for yourself!