Thursday Bouquet #6

G'day Mate! Cheers to Television Nostalgia and an Inspirational Madman.

Welcome to your Thursday Bouquet. A curated collection of all the best things, handpicked and gathered together for you!

Spring Break has been pretty darn epic so far. Peripherally so for me. I spent four days at the ski resort with three HUNGRY teenagers in a small air b&b. When they weren’t out on the mountain (being epic), they were crammed in our tiny living room playing the two xboxes they brought and eating their way through an awe inspiring quantity of Oreos. I spent a lovely day at the new nordic spa and otherwise holed up in my little bedroom to read, write, watch tv and sleep.

I’m ready to head home and get back to normal before we really get back to normal when school starts back up on Monday.

Speaking of normal, we’ve got a straight forward Watch, Listen, Read format for today’s Bouquet. I’m excited about everything I have to share with you!

Watch - Poker Face

If you watched “Knives Out” or “Glass Onion” and thought to yourself “this is great, but what it really needs is more murder” then you are in luck! Rian Johnson is at it again with his newest creation: Poker Face.

Poker Face is a Columbo inspired, mystery-of-the-week style series starring Natasha Leone. The premise, clever main character solves crimes with their powers of deduction, is familiar in a warm, welcoming way and the execution is flawless.

I grew up watching Quantum Leap, Matlock and Murder She Wrote. I live for a show that gives me a new set of quirky characters and a mystery to solve every week. Bonus points if that show wraps it up, with a tidy little bow, in under an hour.

Poker Face is nostalgia. It’s throwback. It’s also, somehow, wholly original.

Poker Face draws on shows like Columbo to create something new. Almost everything about Poker Face — from its warm, saturated cinematography to the font of its opening titles — evokes a sense of nostalgia, not unlike digging into a series from decades past

Belen Edwards - Poker Face Review / Mashable

The first episode is all set up. We are introduced to the main character Charlie and learn that she has an uncanny ability to know when people are lying. We also get the backstory that leads to her “life on the road”. The mysteries begin after that, delivering new places and fresh faces every episode.

Bottom Line - Natasha Leone’s portrayal of the open hearted, inquisitive Charlie, together with the perfectly cast guest stars, make this a hugely entertaining watch.

Listen - You Can’t Hurt David Goggins

I finally got around to listening to David Goggins’ highly acclaimed memoir “Can’t Hurt Me” this week. Goggins’ book has been at the top of my TBR list for a while now.

Who is David Goggins? Where do I even begin? I feel like I could devote an entire issue trying to answer that question

Long story short, David Goggins is the most inspiring human on the planet. And I say that with confidence. This man went through hell week for Navy Seal Training three times, he is the real deal. He oozes hard won wisdom and strength.

Don’t stop when you’re tired. Stop when you’re done.

David Goggins

He has been described as “The Hardest Man on Earth”, “The Toughest Navy Seal Ever”, “One of the Worlds Greatest Endurance Athletes”, and simply “F**king Goggins” by his competitors in the ultra endurance world. Because, when he shows up to a race, no one else stands a chance.

He is the only member of the U.S. Armed Forces to complete Navy S.E.A.L. Training, U.S. Army Ranger School and Air Force Tactical Air Controller Training. He is an elite ultra endurance athlete and a bestselling author.

It would be easy to focus solely on his accolades, but that would be a mistake.

The most impressive thing about David Goggins, is his character. After a childhood filled with abuse, trauma and prejudice, he turned his life around and became an inspiration to millions of people. He encourages others to overcome their perceived limitations, cultivate mental toughness and face life’s challenges head on.

He wants everyone to drop the victim story and be their own hero. His book will make you want to do it too.

If you don’t challenge yourself, you don’t know yourself.

David Goggins

I don’t usually favor, or recommend, one medium over another, but this particular audiobook is special. If you can, you should definitely listen to it.

David Goggins worked closely with journalist Adam Skolnick to produce the audiobook. Skolnick also narrates it. Chapters are broken up by short clips of discussions between the Goggins and Skolnick, resulting in a deeper look at many of the situations described in the book.

The discussions give the reader a more thorough understanding of Goggins thought process and provides even more of his inspiring outlook on life.

I knew that the confidence I’d managed to develop didn’t come from a perfect family or God-given talent. It came from personal accountability which brought me self-respect, and self-respect will always light a way forward.

David Goggins

There is some seriously salty language in this audiobook. For the printed version, there is a clean option but the audiobook kept all of the profanity from the original manuscript. Skolnick has talked about this decision and I believe it was the right one.

David Goggins is a hard man, from a hard world and one of his most respectable qualities is his authenticity. The language is true to his experience, the world he came from and his way of communicating.

I implore you to look beyond the harshness of the language to the message and the man behind it. It has the capacity to change your life. For real.

David has a new book that was just released last year called “Never Finished”. I look forward to reading it ASAP.

If you don’t want to commit to a whole book, Goggins has appeared twice on the Rich Roll podcast. That’s where I discovered him. Both interviews are excellent and well worth your time. Bonus : you get to hear his words in his voice. It’s actually the ideal way to experience his message, as far as I’m concerned.

David Goggins is The Toughest Athlete on Earth - Rich Roll Episode 266

You Can't Hurt David Goggins - Rich Roll Episode 413

You can also find David on social media and, on his website: davidgoggins.com where he hosts the 4X4X48. The 4X4X48 is a challenge to run 4 miles, every 4 hours, for 48 hours. It’s a free, annual event designed to test limits and break mental barriers to success.

Motivation is crap. Motivation comes and goes. If you’re driven, whatever is in front of you will get destroyed.

David Goggins

However you choose to interact with David Goggins (following him online, reading his books or listening to his interviews) you will not regret it. He will light a fire under your ass. Something we all need from time to time.

Read - Jane Harper

I just finished reading “Exiles”, the latest book from Australian author Jane Harper.

I’ve now read all five of her mystery novels. Her first book “The Dry” was published in 2016, won multiple awards and went on to sell over a million copies internationally.

“The Dry” is the first in Harper’s “Aaron Faulk” series. If you’re interested in Jane Harper’s writing, start with this one. It’s a well paced, suspenseful read that will transport you straight to rural Australia. A feat Harper manages expertly in all of her books.

Harper writes in vivid detail, effortlessly conveying whatever Australian location she chooses. When I’m reading her stories, I can feel the static heat of the outback and the warmth of the South Pacific Ocean.

All five of my novels have been set in Australia, but they all have wildly different settings - from Tasmania’s rugged island coastline to the vast empty Queensland outback, and then to South Australia’s lush wine country in my latest novel, Exiles.

Jane Harper - CrimeReads

Jane Harper also understands people. The humanity of her characters and the complexity of their relationships are what make her books special. Her mysteries are satisfying and suspenseful. A good choice for any fan of the thriller/mystery genre.

“Exiles” was a decent book. It was slow, and if I wasn't already a huge Jane Harper fan, I might not have finished it. I will say, that the payoff was worth it. As usual, she spins a complicated yarn that kept me guessing until the very end. It felt satisfying in a way that many mystery novels don’t.

My advice to you? Read her other four novels, all of which I thought were stellar. Then, if you enjoy her writing style, read Exiles.

Alrighty, that’s all for now!

It’s been a busy week. I hope you made some time for fun and/or rest.

See you Sunday!