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Rob Schafer has worked for Francis Ford Coppola for a dozen years and has edited a number of his films including a re-edit of "The Godfather III" released just this past week. The re-edited film was given a new name as well; The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone.

Rob talks about growing up in California, and his learning to play the guitar by spending hours each day at practice. All the practice paid off as Rob played lead guitar in a successful band with older brother Ryan while Rob was still in high school.

We also chat a bit about Hawaii and the trips we spent there as family. Yeah, we spent a number of vacations together on Oahu because you see, Rob is my nephew.

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Ya know, with the life I've lived and the joy I get from conversing, I fancy myself as a modern day raconteur.  But damn, when it comes to recounting a life well lived, Bob Hollowell's the man!

In part two of Bob's interview, he recalls some interesting life events such as riding across the country on a tandem bike with wife Carol. He also recounts working the oil fields of North Dakota, and his eventual career as a pilot after flying for fun, most of his adult life.

After getting to know Bob, it's clear he and I are aligned in many ways, even down to our love of Jimmy Buffett. Towards the end of this talk story session, we discuss what's really important as we're living and dying in 3/4 time.

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Yes it's true; Bob Hollowell started milking cows on the family farm in Oregon and has flown planes as an airline pilot.

Oh, that's not the half of it. Listen to part one of Bob's story in episode 30 of Nobody Knows  Your Story where he really doesn't even get to his airline pilot experiences. What a tease, right?

He does talk about his early life, meeting wife Carol and what it's like to experience the highs and lows of running your own business.

There's a bit of parrothead talk as Carol and Bob are followers of Jimmy Buffet.

 

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Cindy McDonald is a devoted wife, mother, stepmother and grandmother and I’ve known her and husband Mel for many years. So, when I say devoted, let me tell you what I’m talking about. You see, Cindy wrote a book, The Least Likely Criminal, and in it you get an in depth view to her devotion as she reveals the things she did to help her son Bennett, who was injured in a terrible accident.   

In today’s episode of Nobody Knows Your Story, Cindy talks about her life, and the tragic events that led her to repeatedly break the law as she helped Bennett in his fight to survive.   

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In today’s Nobody Knows Your Story episode you’ll be hearing the life story of Lark Dean Galley. She recounts her early life which involved moving many times, living in difficult circumstances and how these experiences drove her to want a life of structure and order.

 Lark has had her share of struggles. On March 21, 2019, Lark experienced a devastating loss—the unexpected suicide of her 19-year-old son. Having already endured her father’s suicide five years earlier, this second death hit especially hard.

Like many, Lark has had to learn to cope with loss and we’ll talk about her book, Learning to Breathe Again: Choosing to Heal After Losing a Loved One to Suicide. Life’s experiences have led her to look at things differently. She’s more reflective and less aggressive and when it comes to situations that once required promptness and deadlines, she’s adopted a believe that “things will all work out”.  

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"Honey, I've got to  go out of town on business. I'm heading to Honduras, be back in a couple of weeks."

 Chuck Hagen joined the Army after High School but not directly. He worked a bit and over time decided he wanted to take his life another direction. His eyesight kept him from becoming a pilot but when a recruiter suggested being a helicopter mechanic Chuck thought, why not?

Listen as Chuck recalls growing up in Milwaukee, dealing with the divorce of his parents, realizing his Dad was less than perfect but following his advice to do something more with his life. Doing something more is what led Chuck to the Army, eventually marriage, and a career in aviation all the way out in Arizona.

Oh yeah, and some not so typical business trips.     

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After six months of weekly podcasts, I felt that I needed episode 25 to be an explanation of how Nobody Knows Your Story will be every other Wednesday starting next week.

But hey, I couldn't just do an episode without a story and a few songs so that's what you'll get when you listen to this abbreviated episode.


Aloha,
Larry

Yes, I called the guy and Judy and I ended up sitting right next to Charles's wife. (This will make sense once you've listened to the episode.)

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Karen Christoffersen has worked as a producer of television, radio, film, and print advertising for 40 years. She's coordinated book production, including writing, editing, design, and printing for BookWise Publishing authors since its inception in 2006. 

Karen lost her husband Al in a terrible accident more than ten years ago and is the mother of three adult children. In today's episode, Karen talks about growing up in North Carolina, and the decisions that led her out to Utah where she met Al. She describes the difficulty of losing your best friend but how her belief in one day being reunited keeps her going. 

Hawai'i? Yeah, she talks about that too. 

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Once again on the Nobody Knows Your Story podcast, we’ll be listening to the life stories of another couple. Amber and Todd Lewis are the second couple to appear as guests on NKYS and will be sharing interesting anecdotes from their youth, funny remembrances of their first encounters, their eventual marriage and their challenges together. 

Their life has been different from most couple’s when it relates to children. They talk about how they have navigated the difficulties of premature births, a child with special needs, and how these life experiences have helped them to develop greater levels of patience and love. 

Yeah, this is one of those stories that you truly enjoy, and that you will think about again and again. 

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In the John Lennon song Beautiful Boy, John is heard singing, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”. Life can sometimes happen in a way we wish it wouldn’t, but nevertheless must accept. This was the case for Wayne Merrill when he was forced to become a man at the age of fifteen. 

Everyone has a story; this is true but I’m pretty sure there aren’t many who’ve had a story like Wayne’s. In episode 22 of Nobody Knows Your Story, you’ll hear how Wayne has had more than his share of tragedy yet considers himself a lucky man.

So, I invite you to stick around and listen to the life story of Wayne Merrill.