I blame it on some friends of mine who have a matched pair of Taylors that I get to play regularly...

Uh-Oh, the cat is out of the bag now!

You were feeling left out of the club, no longer welcome at the jam sessions, sneered at by those who had previously been close friends with whom you shared your hopes and dreams,
"Quick, duck, here comes that Tony guy...you know, the one who doesn't own a Taylor.....shit he's seen us.",
and the pain just got too much. You had to get back into the club, back to where you felt safe, where no-one could take the piss, whatever the cost.

It's Grade-School sneaker jealousy all over again...