ODE TO LIZZI PERKINS

Well, big gulps huh?  Tomorrow is Wednesday, June 26.  The day lil Perky Perkins goes into the MTC.  Lizzi Perkins is one of my best friends from Jerusalem and one of the greatest human beings on this earth.  Too bad it took me a while to discover that.  My first few interactions with Lizzi weren't that great, so it's really a miracle we ended up being BFFs.  Interaction number one: Lizzi and I were in the soup line getting soup, or more like looking at it and then deciding not to get soup, and she says to me "Kate, right?"  And she tells me that I looked at her, said "It's Nicki" not that warmly, and walk away.  I do not remember this at all, but I trust Lizzi enough to believe it happened.  And the best part is Lizzi didn't even hate me for being a total beezee.  And she doesn't even hold it against me, she just says "Everyone called you Kate for the first two weeks, it must have gotten annoying."  Which is very kind of her.  Everyone did get Kate and I confused for the first forever and it was VERY annoying, and I am so grateful that Lizzi gets that and that she didn't hate me.  Interaction number two: I can't remember who, but someone at the Jerusalem Center approached me and told me how funny my blog was.  After which I proceeded to wig out and interrogate them to find out 1) How they found out about my blog (I was VERY careful to not let it get out.  I would never get on my blog on any computer but my laptop so the link wasn't floating around and I didn't tell anyone about it except apparently my roommate was in the room once when I was writing a post and she let the cat out the bag.  Mainly I didn't want anyone to know because I would have to censor myself and I am not going to censor myself on my own blog.  And because Frank Judd- WORST TEACHER EVER- was a lil spy and he would get on students blogs and look for anything he could run to the administration with.  The semester before he went on some students blogs and found pics of them "climbing on antiquities" and they almost got sent home.  Needless to say I hate Frank Judd, and everybody knows it.  Including Frank Judd.) 2) Who all had seen it.  I found out that Lizzi, Kate, and Tess (other Jerusalem BFFs) were amongst those who had gotten access to it and been reading it and I approached them and asked them about it and told them they weren't allowed to share it with anyone else. I didn't think I was rude about it, but turns out I was.  But it my defense, I was trying to preserv the privatized integrity of my blog without having to approve every reader.  So another, not so great interaction.  In addition to these not so positive encounters, I found out that Lizzi's dad was a general authority.  And as much as I wanted to be chummy with a daughter of a general authority, I didn't.  So mainly, I didn't have anything to do with the Lizzi the first half of the trip.  Then this one time in Turkey we were standing out by some body of water and it was freezing and wet and cold and everyone was getting sick and Frank Judd gave a 45 minute devotional while we were all freezing our baguettes off and we had to make a little penguin circle for warmth and Lizzi was in that circle and we all bonded as we fought off the black lung, cholera, and a variety of other disease. Then this other time in Turkey we were at this place for lunch and I was playing with these dogs outside and I was very careful to wash my hands after because I'm allergic.  But didn't help because afterwords we went to this place and it was really windy and the wind picked up the dog dandruff and fur on my clothes and scattered it around and it got in my eyes and they got all red and puffy and swelled shut and I couldn't see.  I don't really remember how it happened (probably because I couldn't see) but Lizzi ended up leading me around like a blind woman and it was the nicest.  And we had to walk down this huge hill and we listened to and sang "If I fall you're going down with me" by the Dixie Chicks and it was the funnest of times. She told me where to step and went nice and slow, and was the nicest.  And then she scratched my back while we had to listen to Frank Judd blab on and on forever and it felt like fairies were dancing on my back.  And then we went to a church next and she led me to the holy water and she dabbed it on my forehead and then I was healed.  And then after that I invited her to sit next to me, which was a HUGE deal.  I always had my own row on the bus on the Turkey trip because the bus rides were long and I calculated that 5 people could have their own rows so I could always be one of the first people on the bus and then I would just lay down and fall asleep and enjoy the comfort of being able to sprawl out and sleep on those long bus rides.  But I invited Lizzi to come sit by me and after that I started saving her a seat and she would teach me Chinese and buy fake Beats from me and we'd listen to Neil Diamond and we always had fun times.  Then after Turkey till the end of the trip we were together a lot and we always had fun times and then I was sad that we didn't become friends till halfway through the trip.  But we've also had lots of great adventures since we've been back and I'm just very glad that we were able to overcome our rocky start.

The dog that led to allergy eyes and solidified our friendship and led to many fun games of "Helen Keller"

A few of my favorite things/memories about Lizzi are the following:

1) Lizzi is all about fun times.  Lots of our field trips in Jerusalem were pretty boring.  And by pretty boring I mean extremely boring.  Lizzi always loved to invent fun new games with me.  Mainly the games consisted of throwing rocks.  One time there were holes in the side of this hill and we played ancient corn hull.  And this other time we played "whoever gets the most rocks in the manger wins."  Sometimes our games also consisted of hide-and-go seek.  But mainly throwing rocks, and it was always really fun.  And this other fun game was like the clothes-pin drop but instead it involved ancient pottery, rocks, and a 20 foot falling distance.  It was a real challenge.  But Lizzi is always up for a challenge.

2) Lizzi is a team player.  She has seen Fired Up and she does know that you have to risk it for the biscuit.  In our NOT favorite class, our NOT favorite teacher told us that the back row was making him nervous.  Which is because it was all the notorious troublemakers (Kate, Sarina, and me) and Lizzi.  Lizzi told us that she had never been dubbed a troublemaker.  But despite being a noob at troublemaking she was a team player and stuck with us and learned quickly.  Also.  She was never actually a troublemaker.  Troublemaker defined by Frank Judd is noun: anyone that doesn't adhere strictly to every one of my obsessive compulsive, controlling, demands and doesn't legitimize his Short Man Syndrome Complex.  Mainly she was just her own person and didn't let Frank Judd tell her how to live her life.  She goes to church every gosh dang Sunday.  Is Frank going to try to beat the demons out of her?  Also she helped invent the nickname Napoleon for Frank. 

3) Lizzi does what she wants and doesn't care what other people think.  She has GREAT fashion sense and wears these beautiful African print pants everywhere.  She has also fully recognized the fanny pack for the necessary, practical article of clothing they are.  She is also the only person I know who buys clothing at Shopko, and does so with pride. Also I knew we were meant to be friends when we both fell in love with the vests at a bazaar in Turkey and bought them.  Best inVESTment ever.  Also I knew the vests were the greatest when my grandma told me she wanted to steal it.

Vest friends.

Besties with vesties.

Blessing each other.

4) Lizzi sends me the best texts.  They mainly consist of funny Buzzfeed articles, something to do with poop, videos of her dancing around with a rain stick,  or videos of her holding her stomach because she is having tummy troubs and the song "Dying in your arms tonight."  I love receiving text messages from her more than anyone else on this earth.

5) Lizzi appreciates my sense of humor.  She always laughs at everything and she makes you feel like a Grade A comedian.  Even is she doesn't think it's funny she laughs at you, so no matter what you think you are hilarious.  It's great. 

6) Lizzi is a great listener.  And not only a great listener, but a great REFLECTIVE listener.  And she hasn't even taken M Com 320.  How did she learn that without Professor Shayne Clarke teaching her?!  Not only does she listen and offer great advice but she actually cares.

7) Lizzi is weird.  She has this narration voice that she does when the occasion calls for it.  Mainly meaning whenever words like "hence" are used.  It sounds like a mixture of Gandolf and Professor McGonagall and it is the funniest.

8) Lizzi is always down for a good time.  A few weeks ago she participated in my weekly ammo run to Sportsman's Warehouse.  She woke up at 7:00 am on a Friday morning with me and sat in line with me for an hour and a half out in the chill morning air and she was excited about it and we played Yahtzee and listened to Britney Spears and it was fun times to the maxxx.  And she helped plan/execute the greatest music video know to man.  Spoiler alert: it involves Britney and Fiber One.  Watch out.  Going viral, coming at ya!

9) Lizzi makes great guacamole.  You'd think she grew up in Mexico, not Asia.  But she grew up in Asia.  -.-

 10) Lizzi loves to support me in my endeavors.  We post stuff on the Jerusalem group on FB on occasion to get people going and to conduct social experiments and it is the funniest.  I posted one about how much I hated Frank Judd to see who would just complain about Judd and who would see it and actually like it.  Turns out when 50 people have seen it and only Lizzi, Kate, and I like it no one has the backbone to like it.  Also.  Just posted this super sappy "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" on there because Lizzi and I both agreed that everyone would eat it up, and it would become a thing and we just think it is the funniest.  But turns out I probably should have had Lizzi post it because they probably know I'm being facetious and it's turning into just Lizzi, Kate, and me liking it again. -______- (Whale face- a Lizzi classic.)

11) Lizzi loves Yahoo news and reads it faithfully.  Mainly I love making fun of her for still having a Yahoo email account, but also I love that she reads it everyday and will fill you in on all the latest Yahoo news.  Also, because of her I have started reading it as of late and it's pretty good.

12) Lizzi is going to be a GREAT missionary.  She knows how to be a great example and influence without being preachy or judgmental.  She is going to get out there and show those Taiwanese people that she loves them and cares for them and she is going to develop good relationships with them instead of just trying to force feed them the gospel.  She is going to do great and she WILL do great things.  May God bless you with bounteous blessings and much success.  I'm going to miss you, Lizzi.  But I WILL be at your homecoming. I promise.  And not just to see Mitt Romney. 你是一個很好的朋友，我珍惜你的友誼很多。中國也可能是可怕的. 你知道，我只是把這個在谷歌翻譯
.  好運妹妹帕金斯的.  我愛你

Lizzi appreciates THE RICHARD.