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Comment by abrahamepton | Hacker News Reader

Another way to put that would be to say that if you buy used instead of new, you can treat yourself to a $5 coffee every goddamn day (who does that!? even on weekends?!).

There's nothing wrong with having good personal discipline, but the notion that you can scrimp your way to wealth by eschewing $5 daily coffees is absurd.

Not to mention, that's $5 daily coffees and...nothing else, as there's usually not a second thing you can cut back on in these preposterous examples, and once you've cut back the coffee once, that's it.

One final thought: often the people who say this have zero experience with actually living close to the poverty line. A cheap, unhealthy, delicious indulgence on the daily can make living with less feel much more palatable - or at least, suck less hard. It's not "disciplined" but it'd be a hell of a lot easier for me to be disciplined with my fancy life full of excess.

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> you can treat yourself to a $5 coffee every goddamn day (who does that!? even on weekends?!).

It's not a $5 daily coffee, it's 2 or 3 $2 coffees. 2 reasonably priced coffees isn't so insane if your workplace doesn't have a machine and won't let you donate one.

> One final thought: often the people who say this have zero experience with actually living close to the poverty line. A cheap, unhealthy, delicious indulgence on the daily can make living with less feel much more palatable - or at least, suck less hard.

THIS. I spent five years in poverty. Sometimes actually, sometimes just above the line. Always worried about making rent.

Eschewing a twice-weekly visit to the coffee shop is a LOT easier, psychologically, when it's not "my only reprieve from eating shitty food in a shitty apartment and still worrying about how we'll pay the grocery bills and rent".

And I had the benefiting of knowing that the situation was temporary and it could all be over the moment I decided I had had enough. And a great parental safety net that saved me from the credit card debt treadmill more than once. I can't imagine how bleak things are existing like that with no safety and knowing you don't have an out.

My daughter works at Starbucks. There is a shocking (to me) contingent of people who do indeed order $4-7 coffee-based drinks daily. She sees the same people every day. It's mind-bending to me, but clearly normal for many.

I am guilty of this, except with Dunkin. Over the last few years, I have purchased at least five coffee machines trying to make coffee that is as good but I haven't been able to. I am a coffee addict; if I don't have coffee in the morning, I get a headache.

I'm one of those people (though, not starbucks). It's a drink I can't get without relatively expensive equipment and effort at home. It's a chance to catch up with news without the expectation of being on call for work or feeling like I should be doing something productive around the house. It's a moment of calm before going in to chaos, err, work.

It's also a chance to socialize, with no expectations, with other regulars.

It's a treat.

I visit Bluebottle and probably spend $6 almost every day I work. Does it add up? Not really. Assuming I visit 220 times a year it's almost 1.5 years before I've spent as much as I do on 1 months rent.

If you're making $100/ week, $30 on coffee is a lot of money. If you're making $2k/ week, it's not moving the needle in a meaningful way.

My original comment sounded judgmental, and I don't mean to be. I'm just surprised, but everybody gets to choose their own priorities and interests. I can't imagine spending that much on a coffee drink daily, or spending $1500/year on coffee. I also can't relate to people who spend a lot of money on cars, especially high-maintenance cars, or any number of other expenses.

But me, I might spend close to that amount on graphic novels, or on graphic novels and paperback books combined. I make larger purchases less often, and many people might consider my expenditures wasteful as well.

I suspect many people spending $6/day on coffee have never counted the cost, and might be surprised to realize that they're spending $120/month on coffee. But you've done the math and find it worthwhile, so good for you!

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