First of all, I'm cheap in many ways, in particular I don't like paying unfair sums of money for something easily accomplished at far less cost. Case in point; C-O-F-F-E-E. A nice cafe mocha or other gourmet specialty can easily kill 5 bucks. It's not that I've never wasted 5 dollars but I'd rather waste it on MY terms...call me crooked :)
With 2 teenagers, I'm often sitting in my van waiting for one to come from a practice, or other activity. during such times I retreat to the "kitchen" and fix myself a drink or a snack, or both. While I have no end of stove options, for convenience I often rely on my JetBoil Zip. It will boil water in a couple of minutes, and I usually try to have several varieties of hot chocolate, coffee etc on hand...
My "system" is designed to defeat the need to purchase those $7 butane canisters from places like MEC. Those expensive canisters contain a high-grade butane-propane mix designed for serious outdoor endeavors. I don't normally need that in the comfort of my van, so I have adapted the JetBoil to accept cheap butane canisters from the local hardware store. These cost about $2.50, or a third of the price. The downsides are that the whole unit is a little unstable, and the straight butane is not quite as hot or efficient. Neither of these are significant problems for me. Here's a couple of picures of the adapter...
These adapters are readily available on Ebay for less than $10, well-made and worth it.
So, in a couple of minutes I can be sipping a nice beverage...
For these episodes, I normally opt for an instant powder concoction such as the Nescafe individual Cappuccino:
The JetBoil is great to have for other uses too. The whole unit stores together quite compactly, and can be carried in a small knapsack or fanny pack, to be used on a hike or walk. It's also good for power outages, and can be used to cook or heat foods other than just water...
