There are a few squad members who are jokingly teased about achieving a certain level of material success. I had a discussion with a couple of friends today. They were talking about some bourgie/bougie friends and it was the only time I remember hearing anyone using the term in a way that wasn't completely pejorative. The way they used the term didn't just refer to people who put on airs and acted like they only settled for the finer things in life even if they couldn't actually afford the trappings of wealth. The people they talked about could actually afford to maintain a certain standard of living. The broader definition makes sense to me. Do you think that expanding the more common definition has merit?
I've always associated bougie with folks that can actually afford the lifestyle - still doesn't change the level of annoyance lol. I have two friends in particular who are thick as thieves with each other and them motherfuckers are bougie as shit, everything has to be a certain way - love them but damn. The folks who prefer an elevated lifestyle but can't afford it are termed ghetto fabulous. You can do a few things here and there but you honestly can't maintain.
There must be a happy medium between ghetto fabulous and bougie. lol The friends I was talking to have good jobs, but they budget to stay on track. They say that they have bougie taste, but don't have the means to support the lifestyle. Most people I know would also refer to them pejoratively as being bougie. Yet, I don't view them that way and they are not in the same financial bracket as the folks they refer to as bougie. For me, if the term is tied to people's actual financial means, it doesn't carry such a negative connotation no matter how annoying their uppity tudes may be. Maybe I'll suggest that my friends and I refer to the in between folks as "strivers."
