Spy of the Month
Agent Name: Probably Mongoose
Real Name: Hayley Miller
What do you do when you’re not at 826CHI?
When not at 826 CHI, I enjoy reading, writing, copy-editing, waitressing, dog-sitting, crossword-puzzle design, and recently bikram yoga (thank you, Groupon, for that). I also love meeting new people and riding on airplanes, when life allows.
Spring break season has almost sprung. Which author, living or dead, would you most like to go on vacation with and where would you go?
Stephen King. I would pitch ideas to him the entire car ride out to that abandoned hotel in the mountains. No, really. There are so many authors I would love to meet, but who might not be fun on vacation. Maybe Roald Dahl and I could visit the South Pacific. I'm pretty sure he would be wonderful company, and have some great stories to tell.
What’s been your favorite moment at 826CHI?
I think it was last year on a Thursday, when that "performance artist" drank the water out of the netty pot that he used while singing "The Glory of Love." Then watching my student immediately write about it as one of the funny things that happens at 826CHI. The shock and disgust and joy were tangible and audible.
What is your favorite thing about 826CHI?
That we are trying to resurrect the Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book. That, and watching what happens when the students get excited about something-- the collaboration that happens during Small Group Bookmaking, the sense of trepidation when the students approach the curtain to hand Admiral Moody a manuscript page, the spark that goes off when someone gets a great idea for a story. Also, the other volunteers are pretty awesome.
What is a secret talent (or talents) of yours?
Diorama-making. Also opening a book to exactly where I left off or finding a particular passage. Bookmarks are wasted on the likes of me.
You made quite the Oliver Twist at this year's Promme. If the tables were turned and Oliver Twist got to dress up as you, what would go into his costume?
Why, thank you! I suppose he would need cowboy boots, some kind of bird accessory (parrot earrings?) and a travel coffee cup. Maybe a wig.
What’s your life ambition?
This is a hard one! Generally, I want to be useful to the world, and to always be learning. Specifically, I would love to work in publishing, because I feel that there is so much that sharing information and stories can do for us. Or work for Sesame Street, because it's amazing. One day I will write a children's book, even if it's only for my own children and even if I have to bribe them to read it.
If one grambles to the grombles, how is the frog to plate the coil?
Carefully. Very, very carefully.
Every month we honor an 826CHI volunteer who has gone above the beyond and beyond the above in his or her dedication to our organization. After we bestow the title of Spy of the Month upon these volunteers, we have found that these agents, awash in adulation and admiration, become far less guarded and are willing to reveal all manner of secrets about who they really are. As always, these revelatory conversations are done in secret with our recorder set for 8 minutes and 26 seconds, no more, no less. We end the conversation midbreath if we must. Or the spies surreptitiously send their answers through the electronic mail system with no real adherence to a time limit.
