New Neighbour...

Most of you would remember a woman at uni that, during the final year of my degree, latched on to myself and my friend Megan, made our time at uni almost unbearable, and almost completely ruined our reputations and our relationships with both our colleagues and the faculty. It eventually got so bad that Megan and I would actually hide from her during lunch to avoid having to deal with her.

When this woman graduated (without flying colors, I feel compelled to add) and went up to Launceston to do her honours on something boring about squid, Megan and I were overjoyed that we would never have to deal with her again. Of course, I hadn't thought about the fact that I still have family and friends in Launceston and that they might have to deal with her instead. She then proceeded to embed herself into the life of one of them, and did her best to completely ruin it. At this point, I completely ran out of all Christian love and compassion towards this woman, and really, really hoped that it would be the last I ever heard of her.

But, alas, it was not to be. On Saturday I went in to my office at uni to work on my research proposal and there, in the office next to mine that had been empty since Malcom finished his thesis, was the woman herself. I nearly screamed. I said 'hi', but then immediately got to work and put my headphones on to discourage any conversation with her - I know from personal experience that if you show this woman the tiniest bit of friendliness, she can completely take over your life.

I assumed that she must have returned to do her PhD, but found out later from one of my friends that she had never finished her honours in Launceston and had come back down here to have another go. This made me feel a little better - I would finish my honours before she could finish hers. There is something about her that just makes me want to be better than her at everything and take her down a peg. Megan and I had both felt this way and it gave us a reason to work extra hard on all our assignments, and whenever we got a chance to compare results with her all the extra hard work paid off.

Competitiveness had worked as a coping strategy with her before, so I decided that I would use it again. Rather than despair that she had come straight back into my life, I decided to use it to my advantage. Everyday that I sit in that desk next to her will become a competition - who gets to uni first, who makes the most productive typing-like noises, who stays longer etc. I have the immediate advantage for two reasons: I actually know that we're competing and she doesn't (although it is in her nature to be competitive about everything anyway) and she has to take a smoke break every hour or so (or at least she used to and I'm assuming she wont have quit). It probably isn't the best strategy for dealing with anyone, but its going to have to do until I can muster any feeling of kindness, compassion, or brotherly love towards her and deal with her in a more Christian way.