Let's Do Something New!

For all those mid-westerners that still can NOT bear to jump on the raw fish sushi bandwagon…. I just made it alot easier. CHOCOLATE SUSHI!  And yes you can try it at HOME! ( or on the set of a commercial as I did)

Chocolate ganache center, surrounded by coconut, with chocolate shavings and toasted coconut on the outside covered in a dribble of carmel for the “sauce”. Here is a web address for more Choc. sushi ideas and if you would like to order some for a special event! http://www.chocolatesushi.com/whatIs.html Short, but VERY sweet!  Now, to find chocolate sake!!

Well, I never had any idea about what a Joshua Tree was before my birthday. My sister booked a few days for my birthday in a place called Joshua Tree. This was a new thing for me to actually see what a Joshua Tree was all about and to take a hike in the actual “Joshua Tree Park” itself. I am so grateful that I got a chance to visit one of the most serene and beautiful places I have ever been to with some of my very best friends. I hope you can get a chance to experience it as well!. Here is just a glimpse of the Joshua Tree experience……

Since I have an addiction to ice blended vanilla soy drinks at Coffee Bean, I looked in the back seat of my car and see that it has turned into a dumpster for plastic. Normally I would just feel guilty and move on, knowing the thought of giving up my addiction to these ice blended drinks was NOT an option. But no longer!  I must DO SOMETHING NEW and take ACTION!  I decided to call Coffee Bean head offices and ask them if they would start using recyclables for their cups, so I am no longer a part of being a big hazard to the environment.

Watch and see the many attempts it takes to try to make a change, and then watch and you might be surprised at what I discover when I  finally get COFFEE BEAN HEADQUARTERS on the phone……

I realized that an indoor pool has amazing acoustics. Great place to sing. I also discovered with “google lyrics” on my i-phone I can sing any song I want and know all the words!  So I combined the 2 new things and invited my talented friends David Sampson to play guitar and Mark Cade to play base, and then my 2 best girlfriends and my parents to join the sing-along!!!

I promise this video can not help put a smile on your face. Especially the mini-solo my lovely father gives. Oh and my friend Angela who is holding the camera singing harmony between giggles…. I truly believe that if American Idol ever raises there age range we are SO IN!!!

So turn up the speakers and hit play!   enjoy

Well, I have to say for my 40th I did get many gifts….mostly from people who spent so much time and energy putting something special together for my special day. My Brother Ron was one of them. Many of the home made videos I received were of pictures of good times and memories past. My brother on the other hand, thought that this might be a good time to rethink what NEW things I could do now that I am 40. I could not help but share these brilliant ideas, and add it as a NEW THING for this day. I DO plan on trying some of these, and I hope you enjoy this short 3 minute video as much as I did Not to mention the acting skills of his colleages far surpassed anything I have ever attempted to do here in Hollywood.

Here is to NEW THINGSs my older brother suggests I do, now that I am in my 5th (as my OTHER brother John corrected me) decade

Okay so maybe this is a lame one, but turning 40 is truly a NEW thing for me to do. Not to mention scary…..now I am actually looking at things differently….like…ummm… well, maybe not, but I get to at least say “Listen here you, at 39 I would– but at 40 I do not have to…….” you fill in the blank.  I even used this excuse to not blog every day on my fab. birthday trip…however, I still did something new everyday, and now I have to double up my posts to keep up with my commitment of doing one new thing a day for each day of 2010. So bear with me here. There are some good ones, some fun ones, some goofy ones, and some easy ones….but they are ALL new to me and I HOPE you try at least some of them. Anyway, I spent my birthday week in Palm Springs and then Joshua Tree with some of my favorite people in the world. I was constantly surrounded by my best friends the whole trip. The sun shined on me while I was away (literally and figuratively) and I booked 2 big jobs–one was a commercial (for CLEAR internet) and another one was a HUGE infomercial working with BILL PHILLIPS who wrote the best seller “BODY FOR LIFE”.   I actually got that call on my birthday, like the acting gods for once took pity on a 40 year old “between gigs” actor. I am now officially working, or at least soon getting PAID for it. The name of the book Bill Phillips is promoting (with the help of his FABULOUS co-host ) is called “Transformation“…and entering 40 I think it is a VERY appropriate name.  Actually combine the 2 commercials and the message might be that I have earned a CLEAR TRANSFORMATION. SO, let’s raise our glass to doing NEW THINGS after 40…I hope you keep joining me for the ride. It will be a transformation I promise. And if it isn’t I can Probably get you a discount on Bill Phillips new book and you can take notes

Well, the great thing about being with friends for my birthday week is that there are always NEW things popping up that people bring to the party. My good friend Seamus is a pro at betting on horses. I never have done this, especially had no idea one could do this and watch the race LIVE ON LINE right after placing the bet!

Did we win??  My best friend Shawna picked the horse “spirit seeker”  press play to see if seeking the spirit took number one!!!

The fun thing about doing NEW things everyday is that people volunteer teaching me NEW things, and this one could actually earn me some MONEY!!  This is a new pool trick…… actually the ONLY pool trick I ever learned!

SOOOO excited that I learned a pool trick!!! I don’t even know why!!!

This one is a shorty but a GOODY—and I think anyone can do it!

I decided to stop just feeling bad for people on the other side of the world, and actially DO SOMETHING about it. I signed up for women for women international and become a sponsor to help a war victim who needs support, and my 27 dollars a month could change her world. Here is the link if you want to help. WOMANFORWOMANINTERNATIONAL.ORG

I just got the packet today that tells me all about her, and this is my first attempt to DO SOMETHING NEW and write to her and start our communication.It’s really cool. I recommend it. Once you can figure out what to say

There is a place in L.A. called ECHOPLEX in Silverlake and on the 3rd Thursday of every month they have ROLLER DERBY DISCO—-that would mean rollerskating, well, in a bar. They transform the regular scene here to a complete roller rink, and even rent skates for 5 bucks. My only advice is ….DON’T drink and skate. They do not go well together. If you want the link and you DARE to do it yourself here it is….info right here at YELP ECHOPLEX INFO.

My DO SOMETHING NEW was to get myself off the couch on a rainy L.A. night, convince some friends to do this NEW thing with me, and ….ALLLLLLLLLL SKATE!!!!!!!  Press play to see the action…..

This was something I had never seen before, and am very surprised I have not done an infomercial for it yet. It is a mat for your back that is similar to acupressure, or acupuncture.

it is supposed to help your aching back, or anyone with back problems. Since I am on a mission to try new things, I gave it a try. See for yourself  what you think. Here was my experience.

Oh yeah, and here is the link, in case you want to actually buy one and try it out at home  SHAKTI  MAT.

This was a suggestion from one of my readers……to try and eat and drink ONLY GREEN for one day. I start with a GREEN shake that has more veggys then I have had in my lifetime.

And then the challenge was to continue to ONLY eat and drink GREEN for the rest of the day.  So here is the video of my GREEN DAY. I feel so healthy now.

Well today a paper came out here In Los Angeles with an article about this lovely blog. I met this person at a new years eve party, and he was so interested in me and the NEW THINGS I was doing on this site, that he interviewed me for  The Canyon News.

Print this article - Email this article Ms Adventure, Rachel Reenstra, Exclusive Interview Posted by Tommy Garrett on Feb 7, 2010 – 10:02:31 PM BEL AIR —Actress, host Rachel Reenstra is a household name to regular viewers of television. However, the beautiful Hollywood star is a lot more than just a pretty face. This week Canyon News caught up with the busy lady and asked her about her career and a charity that is close to her heart. Being a comedian is part of her repertoire as well, so do expect her to be funny. The new-age media maven talks about everything that is important to her and to others. She even teaches us how to give easily to the efforts to save lives in Haiti. Q-Could you tell us about letsdosomethingnew.com? A-“Letsdosomethingnew.com was an idea I came up with last year. After hosting two national TV shows and feeling frustrated that I had no control over content, I asked myself what would be something that I would love to host? What content would inspire people to enjoy life? What would allow people to create an adventure for themselves every day without having to spend a lot of money or time? This will be a combination of the two national shows I already hosted “Ms. Adventure” on Animal Planet and “Designed to Sell” on HGTV. This will be a life makeover show; how to design your life with adventure. This new project is a place people can go everyday to see the new things they can try in their life. I’ll try ONE new thing a day for the entire year and share it with a 3-5 minute entertaining video.” “Why not show people how easy it is to try one NEW thing a day? This way I could also do something new everyday and share it with the world, without worrying if the network approved of what I said or how I said it. I can make it funny, interesting and interactive, so people can go to my Web site and comment on the new things they tried, and also give me suggestions for any new things they want to see me do. It brings joy to my life and I get to share fun and innovative ideas to enrich others lives, just by trying something new!” Q-Your TV work is prolific. What is your favorite role or show that you’ve done so far? And why? A-“I have done Sitcoms, commercials, infomercials, voice-overs and hosting, yet to this day the favorite thing I have ever done was ‘Ms. Adventure.’ I got to travel the world and compare animal behavior to human behavior. Not only could I use my comic skills, but the places and things I got to see changed my life. I repelled into bat caves, snorkeled in the great barrier reef, fed kangaroos, rode elephants and camels and even had wild baboons climb all over me in South Africa. I had a close-up look at natures wonders. I have seen some animals I thought could only be made-up in fairy tales. There are just so many creatures that I had no clue even existed, and to see the intelligence of animals and how they survive was awe inspiring. I love being an actress and a host, but mostly because if you can get lucky enough to get a gig that will expose you to wonders all over the world, your eyes open to how magnificent life is and how lucky we are to be a part of this planet. I feel blessed that I got the chance, and even got paid, to experience the amazing world outside of Hollywood.” Q-I enjoyed you on HGTV’s “Design to Sell.” Are you naturally creative or did you take courses to learn design and interior decorating? A-“I have no clue about decorating, Tommy. In fact, if you ever see my place, you will see my taste has not changed much since college. I love lava lamps, bean bags, candles, hanging beads, bright colors and twinkly lights. Think Austin Powers meets WHOville. I would be a “Design to Sell” disaster. I was hired as a host for the show because the network saw me on Animal Planet and loved my sense of humor. They wanted to bring funny to a design show. Ironically, when I was hired, and turned me into the typical, no personality, cookie cutter host that always asks the same questions and is never allowed an opinion. That is HGTV. They were afraid to explore something different. I did 39 episodes and then I chose to leave. I realized that being on TV was not as important as being able to be myself and not compromise my entertainment skills.” Q-You’ve also done stand-up comedy. Is that as scary for you as it has been for me? A-“Stand-up comedy is probably the scariest thing anyone can do. They say the number one fear (over dying), is speaking in public. I love it and I am not afraid of speaking in public, but what does scare me is doing stand-up in L.A., where there are 30 comics that perform a night and most of them are terrible and you have to wait four hours to go on for five minutes and by that time most of the people have left the building. That part terrifies me. I now do stand-up all over the country, but try to avoid Los Angeles.” Q-What actor or actress have you not worked with that you’d love to have the opportunity to do so? A-“Oh this is easy. I want to work with Ricky Gervais because he is brilliant and exactly my sense of humor. I want to work with Eddie Izzard because he is also one of the most intelligent, funny and talented performers alive. I want to work with Larry David because “Curb Your Enthusiasm” is one of the best shows on television. I want to be on Stephen Cobert and Howard Stern because I do not go a day without beginning with Howard and ending with Steven. And when I say be on them I mean be on them. Physically.” Q-You’ve become involved in the fund raising efforts for Haiti’s rebuilding and humanitarian needs. How can people help? A-“My site letsdosomethingnew.com is very much about many ways to give. In fact, I dedicated one of my ‘New Things To Do’ on the site to Haiti. I made a funny video about how easy it is to text HAITI to 90-999. Everyone texts. In fact I am texting right now while I am doing this interview so truly there is no excuse not to give 10 bucks with one text that takes four seconds. You can always tell people to give but that takes effort, and although people feel bad for the people in Haiti, writing a check to The Red Cross is something most people won’t take the time to do. I like to let people know the easiest way, so we can ensure more people give. Another way to give is through iTunes. If you love music like me you can simply go to iTunes and give that way. Just Google iTunes Haiti. You will see the link that allows you to choose one button to click to give through your iTunes. One hundred percent of the money will go to The Red Cross. Then download Ricky Gervais’s podcast. It’s four bucks and is one of the funniest things I have listened to. Give to the Red Cross and then reward yourself with some laughs. Giving should always be this easy and fun. That way more people will do it.” Running into Rachel at a New Year’s Eve party was a real highlight. Photographs Courtesy: Rachel Reenstra

Aviva Bush suggested that I try to steam a fish in my DISH WASHER!  She told me that it works, and I even read up on the internet, that it is not only possible, but there are directions on the internet as to exactly how this is done. Here are directions for  DISHWASHER STEAM SALMON. (Just click on that and it will show you how.)  However, I used Tilapia, and if you watch this video you can see how I had NO IDEA what would happen. Press play to see the fishes with the DISHES…….

Not much to say here except it was finally TIME. I have reached the age where I think I should feel good about my body and not be ashamed to go and get some pictures of me with my top off.

So here is the video of me doing exactly that. I recommend this to any woman who wants to feel good about herself. Oh yeah, and the pictures just might extend your life if they turn out o.k.