CURMUDGEONLY YOURS -- Richard Bonte

Eric M. Twiggs is the author of The Discipline Of Now: 12 Practical Principles To Overcome Procrastination. He is also the host of a weekly inspirational podcast titled "The 30 Minute Hour."

As a Certified Life & Business Coach, Eric has conducted over 28,000 coaching sessions, helping executive leaders and entrepreneurs who have moved from feeling frustrated, to finding fulfillment.

He has also led organizations of 500 or more people in corporate America, and shared his message with corporations, associations, and congregations across the country.

By reading The Discipline of Now, you will receive a proven blueprint to beat procrastination, so you can make more money, get more done, and become aligned with your Divine purpose!

Thomas Pépin Lehalleur is a French national who has lived all his life in France. After passing his baccalaureate, he became a tennis instructor and First Aid specialist. Today, he is a first-class blogger and writer with definite ideas on French politics and economics. His blog is inutilejournal.blogspot.com.

Today, my guest is Ettore Farinelli who is an architect living in Rome, Italy. He is the CEO of his company, ‘Silo Impianti’ (‘Silo Works’) that deals in solar and Eolic or wind energy; he is also involved in the construction, renovation and maintenance of buildings like embassies or ministries). Since he has a lot of energy, he also builds and restructures prestigious buildings for friends and clients.

Ettore is an avid skier and loves to go boating in beautiful Sardinia. Art and architecture are his passions, but he can talk about any subject. We will be speaking to him again about Italian politics.

Pat McKanic is an author, entrepreneur and former journalist. Her debut novel, Illusions of Paradise, earned a Five Star review from Readers’ Favorite and has more than two dozen Five Star reviews from readers on Amazon.com (illusionsofparadise.net)

Pat’s diversified communications company, Pat McKanic & Associates, LLC, which celebrated 19 years in business in 2019, specializes in public relations, marketing, media training, social media marketing and executive and business coaching. The company recently launched BookBuzz Media, a division specializing in helping indie authors market their books.

The ADDY Award-winning former print and broadcast journalist reported for news organizations including newspapers in the Caribbean, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times Co.

A noted public speaker, Pat is known for motivational and inspirational presentations to business, professional and civic organizations that move people to action and encourage them to believe in, and start living their dreams, no matter their age or station in life. She is also widely recognized for sharing strategies for successful media and marketing campaigns, and the very popular “Creating A Mystery” presentation to writers.

The Certified Life Coach enjoys reading, traveling and creating art, and is working on a follow-up to Illusions of Paradise.

Dona Lee is CEO of PLOTTING SUCCESS, an author’s services company helping authors write, edit, publish, and market their work. In 2005 she joined the Sarasota Fiction Writers, in two years becoming the President and then after her term, she became the editor of their monthly newsmagazine covering the writing industry in Manatee & Sarasota Counties. Her experience with SFW led her to establish a new group in Manatee County associated with the Florida Writers Association. For fourteen years she has helped dozens of writers improve their craft, finish their books, publish and market. She owns an independent book gallery specializing in Florida-authored books where she takes on clients to help them on their journey to publication.

Her mentoring/tutoring skills grew and she and her partner (now husband) wrote a book, Published! The Complete Guide to Non-Traditional Publishing now in its second edition. It has been used in countless workshops, seminars, and classes.

Dona has an AS Degree in Business Management with a minor in Journalism and was editor of her college newspaper. Dona’s won multiple short-story contests, written Published! The Complete Guide to Non-traditional Publishing and recently released her debut novel, Chimera. More info @ www.plotting-success.com

Jane Plitt is a passionate, inspiring speaker/author. She ran a thriving business consulting practice until she became enthralled with the Martha Matilda Harper story. In 1996, she was appointed a Visiting Scholar to the University of Rochester to pursue her research; the result was a book entitled Martha Matilda Harper and the American Dream: How One Woman Changed the Face of Modern Business. Syracuse University Press released it May 2000. As a result of Plitt’s efforts, Harper was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame along with the American Business Hall of Fame. In 2017, Plitt released a young children’s book entitled, Martha’s Magical Hair published by Jade Publishing. In 2018, Plitt co-wrote a young adult version of the Harper story, Martha the Hairpreneur, with Sally Valentine. In 2019, a paperback version of the Harper biography was released.

Jane Plitt is a 1969 graduate of Cornell University’s School of Industrial & Labor Relations and is recognized in Who’s Who in the United States and the World. In 2018, she was recognized with her husband for the Spirit of Manatee Leadership award given by the Manatee Community Foundation and was recognized for being a Women of Achievement by the AAUW - Bradenton Chapter. In 2017, she received the Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award, and has received many other accolades throughout her life.

Devina Kaur is the founder of The Sexy Brilliant Revolution. A philosophy that started thanks to her Craigslist dating addiction, Devina is a fun-loving, flamboyant straight-talker born and raised in India. She’s a North America based author, entrepreneur and media personality.

THIERRY TARANTO was born in 1960. His father was a political refugee from communist Bulgaria who arrived in France in 1948. His mother was born in Paris, but her mother emigrated from Poland in 1920. So Thierry is a second-generation Frenchman.

He received his high school degree from a posh high school—the École Active Bilingue de Paris—where half the schooling was done in English. He then attended the very prestigious Sciences Po Paris and graduated in 1985 from a university attended by certain former French presidents including Giscard d’Estaing, Chirac, Hollande and the current president, Emmanuel Macron.

He has worked his whole career in international advertising agencies like J. Walter Thompson, McCann Erickson, BBDO and he has been with the French automotive group Peugeot PSA for the last 20 years.

He and his family live in the suburbs near Paris.

Bernard Martin was born in 1952 in Rabat, Morocco. He has French and American citizenship and is married with two children. Retired from the French government, he has lived in Bradenton, Florida since 2001. He loves film, travel and reading, but his real passion is sports: he loves all sports but especially soccer, tennis and of course Pétanque (Bocce Ball American Style) that we will discuss today. He has been practicing pétanque since the age of five. A few more statistics? His favorite color is blue, his favorite number is 10, his favorite dishes are duck’s breast and couscous; and his favorite cities are Paris and London.

Carlos Chiossone has spent the last 30 years working as a commercial photographer and cinematographer in NYC. He is the founder of N2NGO, a non-profit that exists to connect families affected by natural disasters with their loved ones. Originally from Venezuela, Carlos witnessed the effects of natural disasters growing up. This led him to volunteer with a number of non-profits in disaster response over the years. In 2017, Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. Carlos, a licensed Amateur (Ham) Radio operator was able to connect over 400 families with their loved ones on the mainland following the storm. This inspired him to start N2NGO, which today uses satellite phones and internet to connect survivors with their loved ones. Carlos lives in New York City with his wife and two children.