Sandy Cheeks

Sandra "Sandy" Cheeks is one of the main protagonists of the series. She is the only female character.
She is a squirrel and SpongeBob's best friends. Sandy is notable for her Texan characteristics and knowledge of Karate and science.

Description

Sandy comes from the state of Texas, she was actually born in Houston, Texas but she exhibits many characteristics of a stereotypical "cowgirl" character by going to every city in Texas. She speaks with a heavy southern accent, and uses typical southern slang words and phrases. She is very fond of her homeland and its culture, as most notably seen in the episode "Texas," in which she grows homesick for it and considers leaving Bikini Bottom to return to Texas. In that same episode, she takes great offense at SpongeBob and Patrick's negative remarks about Texas, and violently attacks them when they continue to insult it.
Sandy is one of the most intelligent and level-headed characters on the show. She is a multi-talented scientist and inventor, and originally came to Bikini Bottom to study sea creatures and their lifestyles. In "Chimps Ahoy", it is revealed that she is employed by a trio of chimpanzees from the surface, named Dr. Marmalade, Lord Reginald and Professor Percy. As an inventor, Sandy is capable of creating extremely advanced devices with ease. Her inventions include a manned space ship, a teleporter, a submarine that can shrink to microscopic size and go inside a person(squidward)'s body, and even a cloning device.
Sandy is also very athletic and physically fit. She and SpongeBob share a favorite pastime of Karate, and frequently fight each other for fun. The karate they use appears to be stylized to fit that of "play karate", as they both mainly fight with chops and kicks in a cartoonish manner. There also appears to be other forms of fighting in the series, most notably in Karate Island, where three other fish demonstrate unique fighting styles, (which looks more like stylized versions of Kung Fu rather than Karate).
Sandy also enjoys extreme sports and thrill-seeking, which SpongeBob also joins her in on occasion, most notably in "Prehibernation Week". Sandy possesses immense strength, and is one of the strongest creatures in Bikini Bottom. She is often seen at Mussel Beach lifting weights with Larry the Lobster, of whom she is a good friend, and other muscular fish. In "MuscleBob BuffPants," Sandy shows SpongeBob her immense biceps and intense daily exercise routine. In that same episodes, she wins the eighth annual Goo Lagoon anchor toss competition, tossing an enormous anchor 510 yards.

Relationships

Sandy first met SpongeBob SquarePants when he saw her wrestling a giant clam and ran down to save her. Since then, Sandy has been one of SpongeBob's best friends, and she enjoys various activities such as karate with him. She is also good friends with Patrick, although she is often annoyed and angered by his stupidity. Sandy is also friends with Larry the Lobster. The nature of Sandy's relationship with SpongeBob is somewhat romantic. SpongeBob has brought her flowers on several occasions, and her official biography describes her as being "the apple of SpongeBob's eye (the only thing under the sea he likes better than his job at the Krusty Krab)". In "Tea at the Treedome" amorous music plays when SpongeBob recalls Sandy's words. SpongeBob's song in "Ripped Pants" has romantic lyrics. Many fans believe that Spongebob and Sandy have crushes on each other.
In the "A Random Act of SpongeBob" short, SpongeBob leaves Sandy a letter (with a bouquet of flowers) calling her the "smartest, prettiest squirrel in all of Bikini Bottom" for "Surprise Sandy Day". In the video game Battle for Bikini Bottom, after saving Squidward from Robo-Patrick, SpongeBob and Sandy commented each other on a good job while looking flushed. A book called the SpongeBob SquarePants Survival Guide, released on November 1, 2002, has a page titled How to Survive a Secret Crush, saying that if you have a crush on someone, you have to keep it secret. SpongeBob begins to talk about him acting "perfectly natural" at the treedome, but quickly ends, saying "I've said too much!" The biggest hint was in Truth or Square, which depicted the two getting married.

Habitat

Main article: Treedome

Sandy lives in a huge polyurethane dome known as the "Treedome". It is air-locked and contains no water, making it the only place in Bikini Bottom where Sandy can survive without her suit. Its floor is covered in grass, and features a large tree, which contains Sandy's living quarters. The Treedome also humorously includes a giant hamster wheel, among other backyardish things. As seen in the episodes "Survival of the Idiots" and "Bubble Buddy", the dome produces snow during the winter, from which it can be assumed to simulate other weather patterns as well.
As seen in the episode "Wormy", Sandy has many pets residing in her Treedome, including caterpillars, snakes, crickets, mice, and birds, among others.
The company that owns this and many other treedomes is the Tree Dome Enterprises Limited. Its board of directors, a group of chimps, came for an inspection in "Chimps Ahoy."