tv meme, day 15: favorite female character

First off, I suppose I'll have to admit that the "days" in my meme have been rendered pretty meaningless at this point, as the date is the 22nd and I've merely made it to #15 on this list. But bear with me. If nothing else, do it for Phoebe Buffay, the hands-down best female character in television history.

Phoebe (played with utterly brilliant comic timing by the incomparable - and underused - Lisa Kudrow) is a barrel of eccentricities and skewed views on reality. And for that, we love her. From her sometimes politically incorrect original music played lovingly on the acoustic guitar down at Central Perk, to her strange musings on day to day life ("She's your lobster!"), to her seriously original family life (there's the suicidal mom, the birth mom, the half-brother, the triplets she gave birth to for her half-brother... it's all very complicated), Phoebe is both a giant contradiction from any normal person's life and a completely relatable space cadet all at once. I mean, who of those of us that were of the appropriate age to watch Friends in the '90s didn't find themselves at one point or another humming "Smelly Cat" in there daily life?

And speaking of shared experiences, let's all agree that it was awfully tempting after watching "The One Where Phoebe Runs" to just run like a rebellious youngster through the nearest park, throwing caution to the wind when it comes to possible collisions with horses. Or to enjoy some mimosas at a Las Vegas breakfast buffet. Or to sing about a blackout, barnyard animals, giant pigeon crap, among a host of other subjects. Or perhaps I'm a little out of touch with society. All things considered, though, I'd rather live life a little more like Phoebe even if it means escaping the norm. Because anyone who's daring enough to learn to ride a bike in her 30s, to haggle with a high-end jeweler, or to attempt to seduce Chandler Bing is all right in my book.