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This is a place for me to express my thoughts on racing, the environment, science, politics, and whatever else might cross my wandering mind.
It will be an overflow of random ideas, reflections, notes and quotes to be enjoyed by those of you who take the time to read it.
Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you down the road...
Peace,
3.13.05 hollywood rants
The biologist in me has to vent a little bit about something I saw in the news today. Academy Award winning actress Hillary Swank is fighting a $150 fine from New Zealand authorities for not declaring fruit she had in her bags. Granted, I have a soft spot for New Zealand because my boyfriend is a kiwi, but I also hold a degree in biology and have something to say about this. Those laws are there for a reason. New Zealand is a country free of many pests which cause billions of dollars worth of damage to crops and livestock in other parts of the world. Therefore New Zealand has strict quarantine guidelines to protect their country from becoming infected with such pests. And they should. Ms. Swank presented a biosecurity risk and should pay the $150 fine, which most certainly is pocket change to the actress.
While I am picking on actresses, I have one more thing to say: animal rights activist and PETA spokesperson Pamela Anderson should kick J Lo's famous bootie. Many hot designers, including Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood, Todd Oldham, Marc Bouwer, and others have turned their backs on fur and created synthetic alternatives that are not only humane, but easily available. Diva turned designer Jennifer Lopez did not follow their example. I'd have to take Pamela's side in this catfight. Okay, I'll get off my soapbox.
There is a major thunderstorm brewing in Charlotte right now. Growing up in Minnesota, I remember running outside with my big sisters to look for tornadoes during thunderstorms. I always loved the calm before the storm, when it gets really quiet and the clouds are racing across the sky and you know something really big is coming. There is just something very cool about thunderstorms. Something to do with nature making it very clear who's boss and realizing our own mortality. Anyway, I'm going outside to enjoy this one.
Cheers, Leilani
PS. Check out this 1964 video clip of a Jim Morrison you've never seen before...
3.07.05 on the road again
I spent the last two weeks filming a tv show, it's going to come out later this year so I'll let you guys know when I get the details. I just got home on Friday night and already tonight I'm headed to Atlanta Motor Speedway to cover testing for NASCAR.com so be sure to check in later this week and there should be some videos up on "Leilani Reports" on NASCAR.com. Hopefully I'll be doing some testing of my own soon, plans are in the works. Really anxious to get back out there.
Other news to share- my website has surpassed 16 million hits. So far this year we are averaging over one million hits per month. It's amazing to me that so many people have found their way to my little space here on the web. Thanks so much to everybody for visiting. Talk to you guys soon. Leilani
This photo is my buddy Meggen and I in Death Valley for the Corvette Quarterly Magazine photo shoot.
2.18.05 more funny videos
Sometimes animal behavior resembles human behavior so clearly the comparisons cannot be ignored. Turn up your volume when you watch these videos. Lessons to be learned: animals, just like people, are often a little camera shy. If I had to take a guess, I'd say this little dude just landed sponsorship to go racing. I have not yet been so lucky, but having become accustomed to rejection of all sorts, albeit a lack of enthusiam, I move on to the next door. And be sure to watch this very important message for couples.
In other news, my dear friend Victoria has just launched her website. Victoria is a very talented photographer currently residing in Amsterdam. We were roommates in our college days. This is a photo she took in Crete.
2.14.05 checkin' in
I don't care if you don't like Seinfeld's tv show, check out his stand up. He's on tour right now and just hit up Charlotte and put on a great show. If circumstance doesn't allow you then check out his DVD Live on Broadway- I'm Telling You For the Last Time. Trust me, laughter is the best medicine and this is some of the good stuff.
I just got back from Atlanta where I was meeting with a potential sponsor for me to race in the ARCA Series this year. I've got a top NASCAR team behind me and if I get the money to race with this team I'm confident I will be in top notch equipment that will give me the quality seat time and experience I need to keep my racing career on track. I'll keep you guys posted.
Meanwhile, I still have bills to pay and my most recent project has me headed to New York City on Tuesday to train with an acting coach for an upcoming tv series I will be filming. I'm looking forward to spending some time in the Big Apple-- I am staying right in Times Square so I'm sure to stumble onto something interesting to do! When I return I'll be off to film the first six episodes of the series-- I'm not sure if I'm allowed to mention the network or the series yet so for now I'll
just leave it out to be safe. I want to make sure everyone knows that while I enjoy the tv and correspondent work and I am honored to be offered these types of jobs, it is not my focus. Racing is ablsolutely without a doubt my number one priority. While I work to get sponsorship, however, I need to keep working to pay my rent (see my 12-27-04 entry below: why I'm not racing).
After several years in the Lonely Hearts Club Band, my Beatles cd and my single buddies are going to have to do without me this Valentine's Day. My lovely beau is cooking a candlelight dinner for me tonight. My recent change of romantic fate has me thinking that maybe good things DO come to those who wait. One thing is for sure, having a shoulder to lean on makes the wait to go racing just a little bit easier to bare. Ain't love grand? Leilani
PS. Well wishes to Billy Venturini, who was injured in a terrible wreck during the final laps of the ARCA race at Daytona on Saturday. Get well soon. Also, congratulations go out to my dear friend Shawna Robinson who just found out that she will be racing in the Busch Series this year. Go Shawna!
1.28.05 bahamas baby
I returned from the Bahamas ten hours before I had to leave for Daytona to cover testing for NASCAR.com. I just haven't had a chance
to write about it till now...
Having spent most of my adult life in southern California, I have not had a chance to explore much of the Caribbean. This is mostly
due to the fact that from where I lived you are always just one wrong
turn away from Mexico. (After you click that link ask yourself-- how much do I love racing to move to Mooresville, NC?) I was shocked to find out how cheap it is from the east coast (round trip out of Charlotte was $172, hotel was $59 per night) to hop on a plane and a short plane ride later be on a beach under a palm tree sipping a cocktail with an umbrella in it. Sweet.
I couldn't believe the flight was so short, less than 2 hours in the air. Then I realized why this was so shocking to me.
The only time I ever fly to Florida is to go to Daytona, and the only way to get from Charlotte to Daytona Beach is to fly
from Charlotte to Atlanta, sit around at the Atlanta airport for an hour or so, and then fly from Atlanta to Daytona-- so the
total trip is like 4 hours long. I could fly to LA in the same time frame. Can someone please explain to me why there are no
direct flights from Charlotte, where all the race teams are, to Daytona Beach, where the biggest race and longest test is?!?
I guess if you have your own private jet for your race team it's not a problem. I'm sorry to vent, but it sucks for the rest of us.
You know what is really great about the Bahamas, beyond the white sand beaches, perfect weather, crystal clear blue ocean water
and duty free liquor stores? My Nextel phone, which never leaves my side, doesn't work there.
Apparently, according to Nextel, they have yet to come to "an agreement" with the Bahamas. Fine with me. My laptop doesn't work
there either, mostly because I don't have one. I'm trying to keep some sort of a life here, people.
I've always found a peace and calm near the ocean that I don't have when I live inland. My sign is Aquarius, the water carrier,
so hey, maybe there is some truth to that crazy new age horoscope stuff. But somehow... I doubt it. I'm a scientist
(degree in biology from UCSD) so I'm a sceptic when it comes to that kind of stuff,
I need proof. Anyway, I digress... I plan on living near a beach when I find my little corner on earth to settle down.
I have like totally been missing the waves since I vetoed the left coast, dude. When I first moved here back in 2002 I went to
Myrtle Beach for a late model race and I naively thought I would stay an extra day and go surfing on sunday. Yeah, right. The
waves were all of 6 inches high. It was depressing. While the waves weren't any better in the Bahamas, we did have a chance to go snorkeling with sting rays. Didn't get a chance to go scuba diving this time but I will make a point to go back soon and knock the dust off my PADI license. Scuba diving is one of my favorite pastimes, it's a whole new world down there and you don't need a $1.5 million dollar sponsor to do it either, which is always a plus in my book.
So the day we arrive in Nassau, our taxi driver informs us that there is a party right down the street from our hotel. It's a traditional Bahamian festival called Junkanoo and it starts at 3 am and goes till dawn. The costumes and the music were amazing. I highly suggest you attend if ever the possibility arises.
You can't help but wonder if these Bahamians don't know something we don't. They live what seems to be a simpler life on island time-- never in a hurry to land a multi million dollar sponsor so they can drive race cars on the weekends and get X sponsor Y number of dollars worth of brand exposure in exchange. Media, marketing, Joyce Julius reports, Nielsen ratings and advertising budgets-- which seem to dictate so much of my life here in the states-- do not rule there. I doubt many of the people there know who the current, or past, NASCAR Nextel Champions are and honestly, I don't think they could care less. They just want to sit on the beach and soak up the sun, man.
One last thing before I have to snap back to reality here in North Carolina. A native taught us a great song at the local market. Sometimes when I have a bad day and I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by the world, I will close my eyes and sing it, pretending I am back at the beach in the Bahamas, feeling my feet squish in the soft white sand, smelling the crisp ocean breeze, listening to the waves crash on the shore without a worry in the world. The instructions are to sing it while drinking a Bahamian cocktail they call Sky Juice (gin, coconut water & sweet milk). It goes like this... "Gin and co-co-nut wa-ter, gin and co-co-nut wa-ter, gin and co-co-nut wa-ter, not made in America."
Good times.
1.14.05 daytona testing
I just returned from Daytona where I was reporting on Nextel Cup testing. Tune in to NASCAR.com for streaming video of behind the scenes reports from Preseason Thunder. Let the games begin... Leilani
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