Is there any Space for A Coco Latina Actress in Hollywood?

During my childhood in Miami, like any kid my age, I was a HUGE fan of Punky Brewster. I hope you even know who I´m talking about. I told my mami I wanted to be Punky´s bestfriend on the show. I thought that she needed a latina friend. Mami sadly informed me that the TV Show was shot in Los Angeles. I proclaimed I wanted to live with Los Angelitos there then!

My Innocence back then promised me it´d be easy. It wasn´t. To become the great professional I am now I had to go against all Nutty clichés regarding making it big in L.A.

As you see, I always knew that Acting would be what I would do for the rest of my life and these 18 past years of ups and downs in this wonderful career have taken me from a successful spot in Miami to “the New Hispana Actress in L.A.”. I have grown professionally and personally. Today I continue to pursue my desire: doing what I love, even though the “Nutty-Voices” have been wanting me to do the opposite... I mean I built a solid career in Miami, Booking hundreds of commercials, acting classes with Top Acting Coaches hundreds of photo shoots, I hypnotize the camera! This photogenic SAG member since 1994 has done her Piña Colada with the best Piña juice featuring magazines and films; hosting 3 national TV shows and becoming the 1st Latin woman boxing announcer (chosen among 500 girls! literally) taking me all over the country hosting for WWE Cocobunga! .

Playing ME on a food truck has been the cherry on top after living in LA for 5 years now. I have an agent and manager. I have been working steady acting and hosting! The best thing is that I have been able to break into the Anglo market which, believe it or not I found hard do in Miami. This "cross over" allows me to share my Latin roots with the gringos! Heck, with EVERYone who wants to be entertained by this proud CUBAN Coconut! 
 
The hard part has been overcoming the many Nut voices telling me all the reasons why I should not come to L.A. “it´s expensive” “it´s hard” “you´re already a Top Model in Miami you know everyone in the business here” “you'll never make it” “everyone´s there, it´s too much competition” “you´ll start from zero”.
But let me share a little insight:
The only competition there is, is ME against my own head with this scratched record of all these nuts speaking at the same time. That´s it. The mind is so POWERFUL my coco amigos! It can help you or drown you. Being in NUT mode will eventually crack you. 

A wonderful gift we have is the free will to think what we want. We do have control over our experience. Therefore, I have learned to notice what I´m thinking and carefully stop myself if I´m thinking something nutty, then I change the thought I´m having and lovingly carry on. NUT will certainly have its way with me, but I won´t let it!

I knew in my heart that I was going to do well in L.A., I would work making a living expressing to the world my talent. I deleted from my head the “Not Making it” option. On my script success was a done deal! I decided to move to lala land and chose not to listen to "those" voices.
What can I say? I literally kicked my Nut in the Nuts.

Eliminated..

Eliminated.

Yes.

We were eliminated on The Great Food Truck Race Show in Denver.

It was hard. Very hard!

I was very attached to the good feeling of closeness to the crew, cast and the whole shabang (sobbing). 

By the time I got to Denver I must say I was mentally and physically exhausted. I was getting barely any rest and coming down with a cold. I remember the night before our last day of selling I thought: "Can I continue doing this? ”To which I answered:” Of course I CAN!” so I took a pair of

Tylenol cold and delightfully passed out.

The next morning we were off to the restaurant depot to do grocery shopping but I had a weird feeling. I was not as upbeat and INTO it as before.

I felt Denver might just be Cafe Con Leche´s last stop. And believe me I did NOT want to believe that.

We got to the Great Divide Brewery and famous quarterback John Elway shared the news: “only one person can work the truck”. This challenge was hard to digest. My hopes of making it to the Grand Finale in Miami, my home town, “my dream” seemed to dwindle. Sitting on the sidelines watching the action was frustrating. At times I would sneak off. Just to have one of the producers literally pick me up and put back in our "section". I felt  confined in a CocoNut and I was feeling a bit nutty! 

I cheered up though when I heard that the Seabirds´ sales had been low and hoped it meant we´d still be in the race!
But Elimination day was inevitable. 

(By the way: It is REALLY awful to stand there waiting for the results.)

We were officially out of the race. I was very, very sad. Muy triste. I mean “you´re on the road and get attached to the experience!” I told my cast mates. It was horrible.
“I want to be doing this show forever!!”.That´s how exciting and fun it was.

As I have learned through experience, some great things do have an end.

 
The week when our elimination episode was aired, I was going through some intense struggles in my life: I was faced with the elimination process of an old pattern of my own. All of the sudden I was filled with fear, insecurity and doubt. 

I knew that it was a pivotal moment that would define my future.

It was an old reaction that wasn´t useful anymore. A similar situation from the past disguised in different circumstances. 
This CocoNUT, Thank goodness, is ready to be more COCO than nut. Even though it was muy difícil, I was able to do what had to be done. ELIMINATE it.  I suffered before and behind Cameras. Then I forgave, accepted, surrendered and LET GO.

ALL the Eliminación paid off.

I AM at PAZ.

Miracles DO happen.

Even when we feel it´s impossible :) the COCOS have a sweet way of proving one wrong. I had Won Top Prize without knowing it: a week later I got a GIG that would pull me closer to where I want to be and do:

1. I had to be Eliminated on the Show so I would be in L.A. on time to take the chance of a Lifetime in my Acting Career.
2. I had to Eliminate my Old Pattern to be closer to my Soul mate and fall in Love. (Truly in COCOAMOR).

This is a Private Practice of my own I Cherish now.

I mean how nutty to think I would work “forever” in a show like this... With all the COCO on the beach?!