I made a man with eyes of coal
And a smile so bewitchin',
How was I supposed to know
That my mom was dead in the kitchen?

Nothing like starting off with one of Phoebe's lil ditties :) It is obvious from the beginning that our resident Bohemian hippie didn't start off her life in the best of circumstances.

Family

Her tragic youth started with her father running out on the family after she was born. Phoebe and her identical twin sister, Ursula, were both brought up by their mother, Lily, and a stepfather. Unfortunately, their mother suddenly decided to end her life on Christmas by presenting her head to the oven ( a new alternative way to get a perm? ). They would have had the support of their stepfather if he hadn't been sent back to prison.

Subsequently, Phoebe moved in with an albino guy who collected change outside the Port Authority building. He unfortunately didn't think much of life and ended his too. Her life is still a mystery at this point with only vague references to brief sojourns at exotic places such as Prague and Milwaukee... There was also a mention of getting her first paycheck at the same time as a cave-in that killed eight people... Coincidence?

But somehow or rather, Phoebe resurfaced in New York as Monica Geller's roommate. But after a short stint of living with the obsessively clean Monica, Phoebe gives up and starts sneaking out to live with her remarkably hip grandmother. It takes several weeks before Monica realizes that Phoebe has been secretly stealing out late at night and coming back to the apartment early in the morning.

The evil twin

For sometime now, Phoebe hasn't had a good relationship with her twin, supposedly grown apart from the egg that they were once. Apparently, the sisters don't get along because Ursula is regarded as always being the first one to do stuff ( walking, talking, etcetera ). She is also regarded as a high-powered, driven career type which actually equals waitress in Phoebespeak. Ursula's job specs at Riff's requires her to mix up orders frequently and resemble a ditz especially in front of Jamie and Paul Buchman from Mad About You.

Phoebe lived with her wonderfully sweet grandmother who was recently widowed ( her late grandfather bore an uncanny resemblance to Albert Einstein! ). The sweet old lady enjoyed telling stories and even told her that her father was actually a tree surgeon.

As time went on, Phoebe's circle of family grew in leaps and bounds. Imagine Phoebe's amazement when she finds that her grandmother has betrayed her by telling her that an anonymous man in the photoframe was her father ( one of those cutouts that come free with the frame... ). And that her real father was alive and well - and NOT a tree-doctor! Whcih was quite a let-down for her. Instead, Frank Buffay is a

The weird half-brother

Finding her biological father also brings in a new member to her quirky family. Obviously the weird gene isn't only confined to her mother's side as she finds that her brother has some quirky qualities himself.

In time, Frank Jr also revealed that he was madly in love with his much, much older teacher and wanted to marry her. At first, Phoebe tried to break them up but realizing the depth of their feelings, she managed to help them bridge the gap of their age difference.

As their bond grew closer, Phoebe decided to give them a gift by agreeing to be a surrogate mother for her brother's babies ( in lieu of giving a gravy boat or a Sony Playstation ).

The gang

Of course no one could be closer to Phoebe than her own clique of friends. Although she doesn't live with Monica anymore, Phoebe still manages to spend most of her time in her old apartment where she shares her life and times with the gang... Monica and her brother Ross Geller, their neighbours, Chandler Bing and Joey Tribbiani; and finally Monica's new roomie, Rachel Green.

Career

Working as a part-time masseuse, Phoebe also plays the guitar in Central Perk. Admittedly she sucks as many people have tried to tell her but living in her own reality, Phoebe just hasn't let that sink in yet. Her lyrics oftenmost displays her tragic childhood and more often not depresses her audience.

But due to an indiscretion with a very handsome, yummy customer in the massage parlour, Phoebe is fired. But as Monica is also jobless at that time, she teams up with her to open a food catering agency.