Observation about rich people: 100% of the rich people I have met downplay their wealth, and don't feel they are rich. They are, at best, "comfortable." They do this by a clever mental trick of comparing themselves to Bill Gates or Jeff Bezos. That is their standard (1)

One person was sending all three children of theirs to the college of their choice, with no loans or debt. Yet, they felt they weren't wealthy, and that this was a normal things parents do. "It's not like we are shitting in gold toilets!" (2)

Another person once said that she had bought a new coat, and that it was okay to splurge because it was on sale for $8,000. She did not understand at all why our jaws dropped in shock. She thought $8K was a normal amount of money that people spent on jackets on a whim.

This same person once said she didn't believe that anyone in Seattle was making less than $100,000 a year. I tried to explain to her, asking her how much did she think a Starbucks barista makes? Or the person at the gas station? Or a server? She had no clue (4)

She was, of course, Not Rich. Because we worked at Amazon. And it wasn't like she was Jeff Bezos or anything. Yes, she had a tennis court at her house. But come one... who doesn't? (5)

As long as you can mentally compare yourself to Bill Gates or Jeff Bezos, everything seems fine. $400K a year is barely scraping by. Its a normal amount of money to make. You aren't rich at all. Just folks. (6)

(Strangely enough, I also noticed this same phenomenon is true of weather... when I lived in Scotland people would constantly complain about the weather, when actually it is quite mild. I would point this out and they would say "Its hardly the south of France, is it now?") (7)

No, you're right. If your standard of weather is the south of France, then yes, your light rain storm is a pounding hurricane. And if Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates is the standard of "rich," then your measly 1 million hardly qualifies you for the title. Its all about level-setting(8)

Oh, and yes, all of my rich person experience comes mostly from working at Amazon and other Seattle tech companies, where you can be hanging out with director-level folks (rich) and worker bees (me, not rich) in the same staff kitchen. It makes for some very odd conversations.

I was talking to a coworker once about being sick of Seattle's grey, and he said the family was going away for the weekend for some sun. "Oh? Are you driving to Spokane?" "No, we're flying out to our place in Cabo for the weekend. Be back Monday." .... oh....