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 Carl Christopher Bradley was born to Johnny and Grace Bradley in Oxford, Mississippi on March 16, 1959. Johnny worked in the timber industry cutting down trees for pulpwood. Grace stayed at home and raised the family.
Carl often rode with his father in the pulpwood trucks, bouncing up and down the highway to Grenada with a load of those massive logs in the back of the truck. Carl remembered the smell of the pulpwood plants when they made their deliveries. But Carl's playtime in the forests of northern Mississippi came to an end when Johnny Bradley was crushed under a fallen tree. There was rampant speculation concerning the incident, including some at the plants who thought Johnny was drunk and brought it on himself, but Carl never discovered the true answer.
For the next couple of years, Grace and Carl lived with family and subsisted on the collection fund from people at the church and the pulpwood plant. But then Grace married Robert Fine and Carl had to stand in the corner of Robert's garage. Robert Fine worked as a mechanic and Carl found it hard adjusting to the image of his new father working in such a confined space. Accustomed to the walls of trees, the garage seemed so tiny, so constricted. In later years, Carl's half-brother, Andy, loved the garage and loved watching his father, but Carl never really spent that much time in the garage. His new stepfather treated him well and soon adopted Carl, but Carl just could not ever get used to that garage.
If it was difficult adjusting to the sight of a man working in a garage, it was even more difficult for Carl to get used to his new brother as Andy grew up. Andy's temper and attitude often caused friction between the two brothers. Carl usually tried to take the high road and allow his younger brother his temper tantrums.
This dynamic continued throughout Carl and Andy's relationship as the years passed. Throughout high school and even into adulthood, Carl usually just allowed Andy to vent his anger and venom. Even though he knew it would bring down a torrent of criticism, with Andy calling him a wimp, a baby, a little girl, Carl just walked away.
In school, Carl did fairly well. He was far from the top of the class, but he tried hard in class and the teachers appreciated his effort and eagerness. He worked the summers in the timber industry, following in his father's footsteps. He saved his money enough to buy an old Ford pickup truck and often spent the afternoons cleaning and polishing the truck. He played baseball in the spring and worked hard on the diamond.
After graduation, Carl went fulltime in the timber. He managed a team of pulpwood men. Carl's hard work and dedication served him well as he worked his way up through the forestry company. After Andy graduated high school, Carl enjoyed the quiet that his brother's enlistment in the Navy provided. Carl did truly care for his brother and worked hard to maintain their tenuous relationship, but he also tired of Andy's anger and attitude.
Carl dated Cindy Campbell for a time. He would take a shower and clean up on Friday nights after a long day in the forest, pick Cindy up, and take her to the movies and to eat somewhere on the Square. The relationship seemed to be progressing and most people at their church felt like it was just a matter of time before they married. But then Andy returned from his stint in the Navy, and Cindy soon took up with him.
Carl was, of course, enraged by this betrayal. But as always, he deferred to his tumultuous brother and tried to maintain the peace. Andy and Cindy soon married and it bothered Carl to see the way his brother treated his new bride, but he tried to remain quiet.
Another point of contention between Carl and Andy was the way the younger brother treated the farmhouse their Aunt Minnie had left them when she died. Technically, Carl, Andy, and their sister all jointly owned the house, but Andy's anger and selfishness took over and he treated the house like it was his alone. He held loud parties that often left the house a mess and in shambles. Even though Carl was sometimes invited to attend the parties his brother gave, Andy paid no heed to Carl's requests to keep the house in good order and it fell into disrepair.
At the time of Andy's death, Carl was trying to think of a way to confront his younger brother about some of these issues.
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