out on a limb

Have I ever told you about my love of Friends? I mean, really told you? I know, I've mentioned it before and even quoted a couple lines from it, but have I ever really confessed my deep and abiding love for all things Friends?

Get ready. It's not pretty.

Well, this picture isn't half bad.
I remember watching the first season of Friends. It was MUST SEE TV and I was in high school. It was my senior year and Friends was just a little show on Thursday nights. It started with a rich girl in a wedding dress running out on her wedding and looking up a friend she hadn't seen since high school. And I was hooked.

Friends went to college with me. Even when I didn't have a TV, I would find a buddy who had one and was watching Friends. I made friends with those people over episodes of Friends. We bonded over laughs and Ross and Rachel and OCD Monica.

Friends was there when my dad died. Every week the show brought laughter into my life.

Friends was there when I moved into my first apartment. My second apartment. My third apartment. Friends was there when I met Charlie, who'd never watched Friends before. (I almost couldn't date him, just for that reason, right?) But I introduced him to the six people that I'd grown up with. And he liked them too.

In fact, Charlie is the one who bought my first season on DVD. Then the other seasons started appearing for various holidays and occasions. We bought the fifth season right before our wedding and took it on our honeymoon. We watched episodes on my laptop.

I cried when the last episode went off. But they ended it perfectly. They wrapped up everyone's lives and made them happy.

Ten great years of Thursday nights. Ten years of my crush on Matthew Perry. Ten years of consistency. Even if everything around me was changing, Friends was on. Friends is still my therapy. When I am sad or blue, I put in a DVD and I can count on them to cheer me up. I never tire of seeing that purple apartment and frame around the peephole. I can quote half the lines and annoy others who watch with me.

I say all this because I bought this:

You're not really surprised are you? Come on. How could I resist?
It was only $3! And it doesn't look like it has been played that much. And I may not really play it either, but I will read the cards and learn more facts about my favorite show. Emily said she would play with me, and that I shouldn't cheat, but it is quite tempting. I mean, look at those smiling faces....they want me to open the box!
Now you know how deep my love really is for these fictional people. And I do know they aren't really real. I do. But they were there for me for some pretty big ups and downs and I thank NBC for that. And I find it quite ironic that Monica and Chandler experienced infertility and that I am going through that now. I have gone back and watched those episodes and they make me feel better. I know that Courteney Cox experienced infertility in her real life and I am proud that they explored it on the show. What a way to use your medium.

Now you know the truth about me and my Friends. Don't feel bad if your love isn't as deep. Don't be jealous that I now own this game. Don't laugh at me behind my back!

Come over and play!