Have you ever just wanted a do-over? If I could have one, I’d go back to September of last year (2006) when I decided to start a group on Meetup.com. I’m an avid scrapbooker and instead of always scrapping alone here at home, I thought how nice it would be if I could meet some friends to have over, friends who enjoy scrapping as I do. Anyway, on Meetup I see that there’s a group of scrapbookers in the next county and decided to start one for my area and see what would happen. What a nice surprise to get 5 or 6 members so quickly! Enthusiastically, I scheduled a crop for us, found a clubhouse we could use, made brownies and purchased chips and drinks. I was ready for friendship! Then, I spent the night listening to these ladies politely tell me that my starting the group had created an uproar within the “other group”. They told me they were leaving the group because of one reason or another and how unhappy they were with it and how happy they were that I’d started a new group.
I go home from this a tad disappointed that there are people “out there” in “the other group” that even cared that I’d started a group. I was told there were things said that weren’t true about a response I made to the organizer of that group after she sent me an e-mail, which by the way I was very polite and nice and maybe if she read between the lines she could have perhaps seen that I just wanted to mind my own business at this point, but otherwise, I was nice to the woman!
I decided to try and stop some of this dramatic behavior before it even started in “my” group, asking everyone to please keep that kind of thing out of our group, come to me with problems, etc. Hardy-har-har!! It went from bad to worse and to just plain MEAN in a matter of less than 6 months. I could do nothing right, every move I made was scrutinized and criticized. Please tell me all women’s groups are not like this?
The only good thing that came out of this whole mess has been a nonprofit organization that I have started with 2 other members. I feel like I have a friend in one other member as well.
So, how about a do-over? Yep, I’ll take it! I’m proud of our nonprofit organization and hope it heads in the direction we want it to. I’ll tell you more about that later. Guess I’ll just chalk this up as a lesson learned; although I’m not sure what the lesson is at this point! Mean people suck? There are militant scrapbookers in our midst?
Maybe this was an odd way to start my new blog, not the best way to intro myself, but I felt like this needed to be lifted from my spirit. You needed to know why I consider this a fresh start. From here on out, I’ll share scrapbooking inspiration, great web sites I’ve discovered for you to try, and hand out some blog candy here and there with a contest or two! You’ll find out how my friends and I turned scrapbooking for the day into a way of helping others. So stay tuned!!
2 Comments
August 23, 2007 at 3:35 am
No not all woman groups are like that. Believe me it might just as well happend in a group of mixed sexes. There are a lot of people out there that thrive at this sort of thing. Its their way of getting attention. Growing “hate” or being nasty towards one person or one thing is an easy and cowardly way for some people to feel powerful. There isn’t much one can do about it. There are a lot of nice people out there too!! And buying drinks and making brownies. Wow! I can’t believe they didn’t see how lucky there where.
Anyway I hope your non profit organization will go well!
August 16, 2008 at 4:51 pm
There are always two sides to every store…