OK, this post falls solidly into First World Problems, but here goes...
I work in manufacturing on the factory floor building equipment. There are a number of other people in my department, most of whom are other women of varying degrees of friendliness (ranging from people I consider personal friends all the way to people who I actively try to avoid), but I try to get along with everyone.
I happen to like Coach purses, and often carry one. I'm not one to switch purses weekly, and have the same one for at least 6 months, sometimes over a year. With purses I tend to just buy what I like if I can afford it, so I have also been known to carry random purses from Kohls, Thirty-One bags, and a hand knitted purse I got at a local festival. DH works at the same place in a different department. We are not rich but solidly middle class, we pay our bills, don't buy a ton on credit, don't have kids, drive older (but decent) cars so we won't have car payments. Therefore, I don't think it's that big a deal if I occasionally splurge on a purse.
However, I tend to get negative/weird comments from certain coworkers.
Examples:
"Wow, a Coach, *I* would NEVER pay that much for something like a purse!"
"Oh, you must have gotten that sale, I know you guys don't make enough to afford that!"
"Oh, that's a cute purse--*I* could NEVER bring myself to pay THAT much for something like a PURSE!"
Or, I'll get coworkers who I'm not that close with asking details of how much I paid for a purse. Mind you, I'm not the only person in my department who carries Coach purses.
I also get my hair colored sometimes. When I say colored I mean to go to the local Hair Cuttery, get a shampoo, cut, deep condition, and blond and red highlights. I'm not exactly going to some high end salon.
"Did you get that professionally done? That is SO expensive, I would never pay for that--I do mine at home."
"Where did you go to get that? Oh, that must have cost SO MUCH!"
Or my personal favorite:
"Did you do that yourself or get it done? Oh, I could NEVER pay that much to get my hair done! I'm the kind of person who spends money on my kid, not myself."
I just don't know how to respond when people say this. I work just as hard for my money as anybody else, and it's my business how I spend it. Some of the people who say this stuff have expensive habits like frequent trips to the local casinos. Gambling is something that *I* wouldn't spend money on, but I would never get all judgey about it and make comments to them--everyone has their hobbies and it's their cash to spend after all.
I'm starting to get really irritated about it because then I find myself trying to justify my purchases: "Well, I got it on sale." (Even if I didn't), "Oh, well, I keep the purses for a long time." "Oh, it was just kind of a silly spur of the moment thing." (Even if it was a totally planned and not at all regretted purchase). "Oh, I just get my hair done because I'm sure I would screw it up at home."
Am I just being oversensitive, or are such comments rude? How would you respond to them?
I work in manufacturing on the factory floor building equipment. There are a number of other people in my department, most of whom are other women of varying degrees of friendliness (ranging from people I consider personal friends all the way to people who I actively try to avoid), but I try to get along with everyone.
I happen to like Coach purses, and often carry one. I'm not one to switch purses weekly, and have the same one for at least 6 months, sometimes over a year. With purses I tend to just buy what I like if I can afford it, so I have also been known to carry random purses from Kohls, Thirty-One bags, and a hand knitted purse I got at a local festival. DH works at the same place in a different department. We are not rich but solidly middle class, we pay our bills, don't buy a ton on credit, don't have kids, drive older (but decent) cars so we won't have car payments. Therefore, I don't think it's that big a deal if I occasionally splurge on a purse.
However, I tend to get negative/weird comments from certain coworkers.
Examples:
"Wow, a Coach, *I* would NEVER pay that much for something like a purse!"
"Oh, you must have gotten that sale, I know you guys don't make enough to afford that!"
"Oh, that's a cute purse--*I* could NEVER bring myself to pay THAT much for something like a PURSE!"
Or, I'll get coworkers who I'm not that close with asking details of how much I paid for a purse. Mind you, I'm not the only person in my department who carries Coach purses.
I also get my hair colored sometimes. When I say colored I mean to go to the local Hair Cuttery, get a shampoo, cut, deep condition, and blond and red highlights. I'm not exactly going to some high end salon.
"Did you get that professionally done? That is SO expensive, I would never pay for that--I do mine at home."
"Where did you go to get that? Oh, that must have cost SO MUCH!"
Or my personal favorite:
"Did you do that yourself or get it done? Oh, I could NEVER pay that much to get my hair done! I'm the kind of person who spends money on my kid, not myself."
I just don't know how to respond when people say this. I work just as hard for my money as anybody else, and it's my business how I spend it. Some of the people who say this stuff have expensive habits like frequent trips to the local casinos. Gambling is something that *I* wouldn't spend money on, but I would never get all judgey about it and make comments to them--everyone has their hobbies and it's their cash to spend after all.
I'm starting to get really irritated about it because then I find myself trying to justify my purchases: "Well, I got it on sale." (Even if I didn't), "Oh, well, I keep the purses for a long time." "Oh, it was just kind of a silly spur of the moment thing." (Even if it was a totally planned and not at all regretted purchase). "Oh, I just get my hair done because I'm sure I would screw it up at home."
Am I just being oversensitive, or are such comments rude? How would you respond to them?
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