Cold Pricklies

How I got involved in the playgroup that Anna and I belong to:

There's this woman. I worked with her briefly a million moons ago. She never really rubbed me the right way. I didn't dislike her, persay, just didn't seek her out. She eventually got another job but we had a few friends in common, so I saw her socially occasionally. Still with the rubbing of the wrong way. Then, it seemed as though she was everywhere that I was. She and her husband moved into our neighborhood, so I saw her very frequently at local haunts. After awhile, it just seemed odd that she'd show up where ever I happened to be. Kevin and I joked that she was my stalker.

Last year, I heard through a mutal friend that this "Wrong-Way-Rubber" (henceforth known as W.W.R.) was having a baby...due at the end of {wait for it} JANUARY (for those of you who are new to the game, Anna was due Jan 25).

Then, through that mutual friend, we got hooked up for lunch together with our babies in tow during the Spring. I was itching to get out of the house and have adult interaction, so I decided to set aside my feelings for W.W.R. and enjoy a nice lunch. Come to find out, W.W.R. is a member of a neighborhood mom's group and she offered to help me join. I knew that I needed to get out and socialize on a regular basis, so I took her up on the offer. I had hoped that now that we're mothers, my weird feelings for her would disappear.

So, now, I see W.W.R. on at least a twice-weekly basis, as our children take swimming lessons together as well. She still manages to rub me the wrong damn way. Here's the thing: W.W.R. is all about status. She only buys her child the finest clothes, gear, etc. I, on the other hand, have a plethora of hand-me-downs that Anna sports and looks damned cute most of the time (ifIdosaysomyself) and most of our gear was either a gift or second-hand. Long story short: It's hard for me to be around W.W.F....don't get me wrong, I'm in no way jealous, nor do I feel inferior. She just has this negative, judgemental air about her that suffocates me. She talks in a very nasal-y fashion and I feel often very dismissed when I offer something to the conversation with her. I know that this is ALL ME, but the negative vibes are intense. Funny thing is that she and her family are out of town this week, so we had our swim lesson this morning, sans W.W.R. and her kid. The whole vibe was different--more positive, relaxed. Maybe this was my interpretation completely, but it was so much less intense. I liked it.