How I got my name, and by the way, it's pronounced "lay"!

(This went on my myspace blog Saturday, March 17, 2007)

Last August (2006) I started toying with the idea of becoming a burlesque performer. Oh, the rush of excitement you get from trying something new! Something where you get to dance and wear frilly costumes - something gutsy and unique! You even get to call yourself by a mysterious, sexy, glamorous name.

I had already gone through picking out a name back when I refereed for derby and knew the feeling of making the "right" choice. It's fun, but boy you don't want to pick a name you're going to regret later! So many names went through my head but Storm and Stormy were the names I kept coming back to. Although I knew very little about Tempest Storm I did know she was a Burlesque legend and it's always cool to give a nod to the "great" ones. (I know who she is now - phenomenal!) I'm also a fan of Storm Large. She's this awesomely incredible singer from Portland that I've only heard via podcast, YouTube, and on Rockstar Supernova but she made quite an impression upon me. Oh, and there was this guy at the gym that tried this as a pick-up line: "Is your name Stormy?" Apparently I look like a Stormy too.

But I wasn't finished, I only had half a name. Last September I helped BCB with costume pick-up as I got acquainted with the girls. Satan's Angel happened to be a guest performer that night and I had the pleasure of meeting her. She asked me what my name was and I replied "I don't have a name yet." She laughed and told me she "hadn't heard that one yet!" Then she looked me over, narrowed her eyes and thought for just a moment. "Hmm, Stormy... Stormy Sin, but spell it C-Y-N." I felt a wave of amazement go through me (it's fate!) and admitted to her that I had been seriously considering the name Stormy. "Yeah, Stormy Cyn", I said. "I like it!" My apologies to Angel for not taking the full name though. We already have Ginger Sinclair and I cringed at the thought of announcers getting the names mixed up, calling me Stormy Sinclair, and her Ginger Cyn. I don't think Ginger would care for it either!

I don't really know how Leigh came to me but it sounded right and I adopted it, alternate pronunciation and all, 'cause you have to be a little bit naughty, right?