The New Adventures of Old/New Me

Have you ever seen the show The New Adventures of Old Christine? My life is very much like that show right now. I’ve been catching up on reruns and I’m just starting season one and it is great! I don’t kid myself into thinking that anyone can do some of the things that television characters get away with and still be as well liked as they seem to be but that does not stop me from seeing the parallels of the lives of those characters and my own. We share many similarities. Christine has to deal with the ‘meanie-moms’ at the school her son attends. I’ve had my own run-ins with women I not-so-affectionately call the ‘stepford wives’ .

I have been with my husband for four years total. Before we were married he introduced me to all of his friends. Most of these friends are wonderful people and have accepted me into their inner circle with open arms. Now I am good friends with both the males and the females in the group. We often go out with other couples and while the men talk sports and statistics, the ladies and I catch up on the goings on of our day to day lives and enjoy gossiping about movies, music and other similar interests.

Not all has been peaches and cream in the friends department though. My DH also introduced me to another group of friends most of whom have known each other since high school. These couples all had children or were expecting their first child when we were introduced the first time. All was well and the men in the group were all very friendly with me and joked around and had a great time. The women? Not so much. I swear the temperature drops at least ten degrees when I walk into the room.
When the cold chill first started, I mentioned it to my, then, fiancé. He scoffed a bit and assured me that it was all in my head. A few instances later and he came to realize that the frostbite inducing encounters were not in fact a product of my imagination. I’ve never claimed to be perfect but for the most part, I’m pretty likable. At least I’d like to think so. I’ve never met anyone who showed with such gusto out right hatred of me. The eye rolling, the prolonged sighs, the deliberate ignoring me when I would greet them or ask a question in an attempt to be friendly got to be just too much. I began to find excuses to skip functions that I knew they were going to attend. This upsets me because I enjoy the company and friendship of the men in the group immensely and my husband does also. He is fiercely protective of me and won’t be around people who treat me poorly. His friendships with the men have suffered as a result.


Perhaps I did something to offend them. Maybe they just do not care for me. I’m not their prototype of what makes friendship materials, which is fine with me. I have no desire to have people in my life with such toxic attitudes. It’s very possible that I deserve their hatred. I sometimes speak out of turn, (who am I kidding, this happens a lot..) and sometimes I say things that are better left unsaid. I like to say I’m brutally honest but those close to me have mentioned the word tactless a few times. However, in this particular situation, I honestly don’t think the problem is me. Sometimes women are just bitches.


Maybe I’m more like Christine than I realize. My life has changed and while I marvel in how far I have come, I still have a long way to go. My journey is far from over and I don’t need the ‘stepford wives’ on my new adventures anyway.