Sorry to hear about it.
Well, with some people, you need to be snobbish and sorta impress them... (either with clothes/experience/intelligence/some superior info you know, that you drop casually, and it's something that they're really interested in, something that might impress them, or a combination of the above, that's usually different with every individual though)
Also, with some people it helps if you look grim and annoyed (before you actually are), then they actually become nicer...
If it's office politics though, good luck.. It might help if anyone else can give you any info, though you really need to be diplomatic about it and not believe all what others say either.. (There can be like underground efforts for someone else to get your job, or you remind them of someone, or they just need to vent on someone and you're the 'weakest link'... There can be a lot of reasons that may have absolutely nothing to do with you.. Other people before you in your work position may have had problems with that person too..)
Maybe she's in menopause or has husband problems (or lack of one), there can be a ton of reasons.. Sometimes knowing them helps to be more sympathetic to such a person or at least makes it easier to deal with them..
If your boss likes you or you have better education or ideas or you are younger/older she also might be jealous/might feel her job might be in jeopardy.. Or your communication styles mismatch (slow vs quick, or vice versa...) Lots of possible reasons out there..
It's probably best to focus on your outside-work hobbies or interests.. To balance your life..
If the person has had any real comments about your work that you could use to improve quality of work, thank them for it and strive to improve. If it's just drama, well... (Sometimes it's not so easy to tell the difference though...)
Sometimes it's not good to praise that other person too much, it may get to their head.. Just sort of respectful behavior-?
You don't have to like her and she doesn't have to like you, you just need to have respectful behavior to work successfully together..
You could maybe also find some 'carrots'/rewards/consequences - if she behaves nice, you'll do this and this, and if she's rude you'll (walk away or maybe say, 'Is this a bad time? We'll talk later then' or something like that...? Especially if 'later' is less convenient for her?
Maybe it really is a bad time and she'd be nicer in the morning/at 2pm... and you could set up a better routine..? A friend of mine has often been cranky around lunchtime - she has an eating disorder. After going jogging she's a different person. You could also ask, 'What would be the best time/way to do this?' for what you need to do together..)
You might really need to be a bit careful with any consequences/boundaries, I've mostly done it at home, not at work or such.. Maybe it's better to read any books/articles on assertiveness or such first.. or even go to a workshop or something..
It helps to work on your energy and confidence.. And balance time with her with time with other people.. If you are enthusiastic about life and full of energy it helps to be 'impermeable' sometimes.. (On the other hand, some people 'explode' then and are better off approached grim.. You need to study the person a bit, and see what triggers them or what might 'work'..)
Maybe the book Dealing with Difficult People by Rick Brinkmann and Rick Kirschner could be helpful too, there are other books and online websites about communication and more specifically about bullying too..
