Adam, it seems most people on this forum are in England. It may be difficult to fight the "only the rich own airplanes" attitude there. I have justified my desire to buy one by simply pointing at the cost of trucks. I will buy a plane. I am not sure which one, but I will. The cost of the planes I have looked at range from $80K to $100K (they're old). Well, the pickup trucks that I look at cost about $50K. In my family we own 3 trucks that averaged $30K. Well, that's the price of one airplane. And we are not rich by any measure! Seriously, people will spend thousands of dollars on all sorts of frivolous things to impress others. A decent sailboat costs a good $100k. How many non-rich people own one and they can't even sail it. They use it as a prop in the yacht club setting. We will spend the same thousands of dollars on an airplane that can take us places, and more importantly, that we can use to poke holes in the sky, and that's all that matters.
I used to think my shiny new truck would attract the hard body young ladies that like to ride horses. My horse didn't help, so maybe my truck would. Not so lucky. Even the addition of a German Shepherd didn't help. I guess I should have gone with a Ferrari. I have to work on my trucks (no new ones for me, and I wont pay a mechanic's fee) and spend my time discussing parts at the parts counter with a pimply faced punk that doesn't know a starter from a spark plug. Not so different from your sitting around the leaky club house drinking tepid tea.
I think I want a Cherokee 6/300. It's not as sexy as a Beechcraft King Air, but it will do. Since I am older now, and have been married 31 years, I don't worry about getting laid as often. But it sure would be nice to be surrounded by a bunch of hotties. But even if they like the Cherokee, I'll have to park it at the lake or on the University campus for them to even see it. The girls don't like to go to yucky airports unless you are taking them to the Cayman Islands.
Just tell people that the plane was left to you by a stranger that you helped on the side of the road one foggy night. You will be viewed as a kind, gentle soul and that might help. The discussion in the clubhouse might even be more entertaining.