You sound a lot like my father. In social situations he would rather sit in a corner and read his book. To him everyone else is boring, his words, not mine.
I've had one of these machines for ~10years and she's still going strong. Combined with a good grinder the RC makes great coffee. The design is simple but elegant and the end result very satisfying.
Vancouver sw eng here. I've lived in this city for 14yrs, bought in 7yrs ago. My house has doubled in value since then. The min buy in has now reached the 1million mark and continues to climb. The ratio of real estate to salary is out of wack and the talent is starting to leave. Vancouver is becoming a playground for the wealthy.