Mean Girls

I recently switched to a new office within the company I work for and the social dynamic is entirely different than any location I’ve been in. I noticed the first day that the staff is heavily weighted on the women’s side, which I knew could either go amazingly well or terribly wrong. Thus far, it’s been split down the middle. Some of the women are incredibly friendly – including the bosses, who are the ones that really matter to me. But the ones closer to my age are anything but nice. I honestly feel like I’ve gone back to high school where the new girl deserves to be picked on and put in place among the mean girls.
I tried, and failed, for the first couple weeks to relate to their conversations about reality TV and fashion. Rolled eyes and snickers quickly informed me that these would not be my life-long, work friends.
Now, I react to these women the same way I did in high school: brush it off. Mean girls have never been worth my effort. I’m not looking for “popularity” in the office and if being mean is the way to get attention, I’d rather quietly sit and do my job. But it is rather intriguing how catty women in the 20’s and 30’s can still be. When do women outgrow this phase? Doesn’t there come a point when a woman realizes bringing someone else down won't actually make herself feel better? Apparently, these ones haven’t. Thus, I stay out of their celebrity gossip conversation and stifle my opinions until I leave the building.
This battle simply doesn’t deserve my worry.