If you're a college girl in Madison, you are bound to watch certain TV shows with your friends.
It is a group ritual, a break from our relationships with textbooks and Helen C. White.
On one such ritual TV marathon, my friends and I watched the equivalent of chocolate—""Friends"" and ""Sex and the City.""
As we sat laughing at Samantha's sexual escapades and crying when Ross and Rachel broke up for the hundredth time, we began comparing each other to our favorite characters from TV.
Natalie was definitely a Monica: unbelievably neat, competitive and a master chef.
Others were decidedly mixes of Charlotte and Miranda or Monica and Phoebe.
However, some of the group was not happy with their character assignments. It seemed that people didn't agree with outside perceptions of their character. Everyone wanted to be Rachel. No one wanted to be Phoebe or Samantha.
I've always thought of myself as a Carrie, lately more so than ever. I have a column, spend way too much money on shoes and seem to have her problem of picking the wrong men, with the exception of the current Mr. Big.
Later that day I got to thinking about television characters. While everyone would say they know a Samantha or a Phoebe, no one wants to be labeled as a sex-crazed weird dresser or a psycho hippie.
It seems no matter what others thought, everyone seemed to view herself as a Carrie or a Rachel. This perplexed me even more as the two are complex, long-running characters. Did I like what I liked because I saw my idol doing it and wearing it on TV?
Or if not, why does it seem I have an alter ego living on fictional Upper East Side New York?
I couldn't help but wonder... was I Carrie, or was she me?
I sought out the help of some friends, to see what other people thought my ""character"" would be on TV. The majority told me a combination of Carrie and Phoebe.
""It's not that Phoebe is bad. You just have a lot of spunk and free-spirited will like her,"" one said. ""But Carrie is the same way, she is just played different.""
My friend's comment got me thinking: Phoebe and Carrie were the same. The difference between them is that Phoebe is there for side plot, as comic relief. Carrie is the axis turning the pages of the story.
Her relationships and problems are what drive the show. Life is seen through her eyes, not any viewpoints of her friends. Although people will always love the Phoebes and Charlottes, it is easiest for us to relate to the person we know the best.
As I watched more episodes of the two shows, I realized that Rachel and Carrie were the most ""normal"" characters. Aside from smoking and being a little spoiled, the two did not have any weird ticks, making them incredibly relatable.
The main characters are made to be like us so that more viewers relate to the show. However, many people copied Jennifer Aniston's hair while ""Friends"" was on the air because she was hot and they wanted to be like her.
I suppose I'll never know if I buy the martini at the Crave because Carrie does it, or if I pick out shoes that look most like the Manolo Blahniks I can't begin to afford.
All I know is I can find a little piece of myself on TV... in a New York minute.
