Originally posted by: Descartes
Espresso preparation is an art and takes an amazing amount of dedication to get it right, but here is the basic idea...
Put the grinds into the portafilter basket
Level the grinds so that you have a sufficiently level surface
Lock it into the machine
Pull the lever, turn it on, whatever you need to do to get water running through it. You need about 1oz of espresso for ~7 grams of coffee, and ~2oz for about 14 grams of coffee.
I skipped a lot of steps knowing that you likely don't have the required tools/time/knowledge to use them (namely tamping, because the coffee you have is likely ground far too coarsely for espresso), but that should at least get you started. I also skipped pedantic notions often humored in coffee circles, because I know you don't need to hear it. If you really want to learn how to make a proper espresso you can read
CoffeeGeek. Also, please feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.
This is my espresso setup.