I opened up a can of worms.
From my perspective, I know Tex is right. I SHOULD wait until I have 500 dollars to blow on the combo, and spend 80% of that on a high quality used commercial espresso grinder. It's the waiting part that sucks. I work for *$ and can't stand the espresso there, and if I want a decent shot I have to budget the time to drive 30-40 minutes down to Caffe Calabria in North Park before 2pm. But every time I go I am reminded of what coffee should taste like with the proper materials and technique. Then I get all search-crazy so I can begin my own trip down the rabbit hole.