Newby here, desperate for some advice (thread 4)

[JRuss]

My W and this "friend" I'm thinking of in particular aren't hedonists. But the "friend" sure thinks she knows what's best for my W. I've known her for 6-7 years but spoken to her only a handful of times, as had my wife before BD. She knows absolutely nothing about me. To my W's way of thinking, this woman handled her divorce and continues to handle her co-parenting perfectly. My W looks at her and sees it as proof positive that everything will be fine for our children (because this woman says her children are fine -- my W has no idea if this is true), and that she and I will be the friendliest, bestie co-parents ever.

This friend went to multiple marriage counselors and took years to divorce her H, and she now tells my W that was a mistake, that she wishes she'd D sooner. My wife is all ears, I think.

It makes me lose respect for my W, frankly. She was always such an independent thinker, not this fawning novice getting infallible wisdom from this Rasputin-like harpy.