Heyyy girl!! It’s Millie. SO excited to celebrate Ken and Darcy’s wedding in Chicago next month :))) I wanted to introduce myself since we’ll be sharing a hotel room—out-of-town weddings can get so expensive, so it was smart of Darcy to introduce us to help save money on lodging!

First off, how do you know Darcy? She and I met in 10th grade during our school’s production of The Wizard of Oz. Darcy was Dorothy, obviously, and I was the tornado that picks her up and whisks her away to Oz. I didn’t have any lines, but I gave that role everything I had. And man, could I twist. Even though Darcy works in private equity now (what a sell-out, haha!), she and I are still closer than bumps on a log.

Me? Well, I’ve been acting and performing ever since, and living the free-range artist lifestyle to boot! I enjoy baking, I love a good party, and I’ve been known to flip a rattler from time to time. I love the feeling of climbing into an empty freight train car with the rushing railroad beneath you, the wind in your hair, and nothing to your name but your pinstriped cap, a can of beans, and your musical talents.

What a rush. Ain’t nothin’ like catchin’ a freight on the fly.

In fact, I’ll be traveling that way right before the wedding—not sure what day you’re getting into the city, but I’ll be planning to arrive that Thursday, depending what time my freight train gets in. I'll have been train hopping for two months at that point, so I might look a bit like the chimney sweep in Mary Poppins when I get in, but don’t worry, I clean up nice!

Anyways, after riding the rails of this great nation for so long, material comforts don’t really mean much to me, so I’m cool with any kind of sleeping situation. Give me a floor, an empty cupboard, a hammock under the gentle, speckled shade of the great American Chestnut—you name it, I can sleep there.

As a performer, I do have a bit of an intense bedtime routine though. It’s 30 minutes of cardio stretching with deep, labored ujjayi breathing, followed by 40 minutes of perching near a windowsill and staring longingly into the sky. Whatever emotions bubble up in those 40 minutes I have to let out, so I might laugh, sob, or fall to my knees and scream my mother’s maiden name, but I snap out of it pretty easily once my timer goes off. My acting coach and freight-mate Wayne says my emotions live close to the surface, so it’s really important that I cathart before bed.

Hopefully it doesn’t keep you up, but if you’re a light sleeper I’d definitely bring noise-cancelling headphones.

Like most performing vagrants, I’m a little superstitious, so I’ll be bringing a special tincture that wards off theater ghosts and keeps my vocal folds lubed up right. It’s a secret recipe, but it smells a bit like chai, sweat, and hot dogs, so we’ll need to stay in a place with a fridge to keep it from souring.

I don’t snore or sleep talk or anything crazy like that, but I do occasionally sleep dance. It’s usually just the tap sequence in “Singin’ in the Rain” though, so there aren’t any acrobatics involved. If this happens, it’s usually best to let me get through the whole routine without interrupting. Definitely do not try to get up and dance with me—I hate sharing the spotlight and will need to start over. If you want to get involved though, it does help me get back to bed if you applaud and throw flowers at my feet at the end. No pressure though!

Anyways, that’s enough about me! Let me know what your budget is and what neighborhoods you’re thinking of staying in. My main source of income right now is bucket drumming outside of the Poughkeepsie Amtrak station, so I’ll definitely be ballin’ on a budget haha, but I’m sure we can find something that works for both of us.

So excited—should be a total gasser!