My friends have decided I'm a 'bad hang' because I refuse to pay for their expensive taste.
By @ashok2 · Friends
We have a group chat for planning dinners, and it's become a nightmare. They always pick these ridiculously overpriced places and then act shocked when I suggest we go somewhere that doesn't require a down payment.
The full story
I am in a group chat with four of my closest friends. Or, at least, they used to be my closest friends before they all apparently won the lottery and forgot to tell me. We use the chat to plan a monthly dinner, which used to be fun and casual. Now, it's a constant battle. For the last six months, every single suggestion has been for some trendy, absurdly expensive restaurant. We're talking $40 appetizers, cocktails that cost more than a bottle of wine, and entrees that are the price of my weekly groceries. I'm doing fine financially, but I'm not an idiot. I'm not spending $200 on a Tuesday night just to eat a scallop the size of a quarter. Every time they suggest one of these places, I'm the one who has to be the buzzkill. I'll gently reply, 'Hey, that spot looks cool, but it's a little pricey for me right now. What about that new taco place?' And the response is always radio silence, followed by someone else saying, 'Yeah, let's just do the expensive place! You only live once!' Last week was the breaking point. They picked a French restaurant where the cheapest main course was a $65 chicken. I told them straight up that it wasn't in my budget. One of them replied, 'Just get an appetizer then?' as if that's not incredibly awkward. Another friend then sent me a private message saying I was becoming a 'bad hang' and 'ruining the vibe' by always complaining about money. they said the whole point is to have a nice experience together and my 'constant negativity' about price makes it not fun for them. I was pretty stunned. I'm not trying to be negative; I'm trying to be realistic. We're all in our late 20s with normal jobs. I suggested we could alternate between fancy months and cheap months, or do other things besides go to dinner. But apparently, that's not good enough. Now the group chat is dead silent and I know they're talking in a different chat without me. Am I really the one being unreasonable here? I feel like I'm being punished for being financially responsible.
Keep reading
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- I have been formally banned from choosing the restaurant for my friend group.
- Our friend group chat now has a 'no memes' during work hours rule.
- At what point does being 'thrifty' just become rude?