Time Waits for No One

Chapter 3 - Uncle Q Comes to Town

"Throw ya hands in the AIR!

And wave 'em like you just don't CARE!

And if you're feeling good with Hollywood,

Everybody say OH YEEEEAAH!"

"OH YEEEEEEAH!" resounded the three Carter kids, sitting around their father's big and ugly but fancy and powerful sound system in the palm of DJ Hollywood's hand from the comfort of the family living room. Jimmy sat closest to the system at the arm of the plastic-covered sofa, Jacqueline seated on the floor by his feet, and the baby brother Jeremiah on his feet, snapping and grooving along. None of them spoke other than to respond to the calls transmitting through the speakers from a tape Jimmy had been hyping them to listen to all day. For them, this recording of DJ Hollywood's most recent set at the South Bronx's newest hangout, Disco Fever, was the sound of a new vanguard, the sound of a new generation. To James and Evelyn Carter, it was noise.

"I don't understand why y'all always want to play that junk. I thought it sounded bad in the parks, but it's junk over the system!" James complained from his seat at the dining room table, waiting patiently but not peacefully as his wife washed dishes in the kitchen, smirking at her husband's criticism. She didn't mind the music as much, but she had been home through all the fads and phases her children had gotten into while her husband was running his business downstairs. She was there when Jimmy and a toddling Jeremiah aspired to be Harlem Globetrotters, dribbling incessantly and making a racket despite her pleas for them to stop. When the kids and their friends would put on homemade variety shows in the living room, trying to emulate the Family Stone and the Gladys and the Pips, she and the other moms were their devoted audience. Evelyn faced all the racket for her children through all the attempted double dutch teams and roller skating crews and plans to make a band with no instruments. Whatever this new craze was that kept their attention was no bother to Evelyn as long as it kept her kids out of trouble.

James wasn't as accepting.

"Why does he have to play the same drums over and over? Get on with the song!"

"Because it's the best part of the record, old man! We doing y'all a favor, y'all listen to a whole song just to get to the breakdown; we making it easier on your ears, dig?" Jimmy explained with a big grin to his father, still bopping to the music. James Sr. cut his eyes at his oldest son, trying to hide a smile.

"You not doing me no favors, Junior! That shit is gonna make me go deaf, and I'm going to lose Estella's, and Jeremiah is gonna be out here wearing the same shoes all through high school. You don't want that for your baby brother, do you?"

"No, I'm not!" Jeremiah said, still grooving around the living room carpet. "Jackie will buy me new shoes, right, Juju?"

Jacqueline ignored all the men, rolling her eyes as she took in the music, used to the banter.

"Not if she doesn't get ready for work, she won't!" The patriarch quipped.

"I am ready, Daddy! I have my shirt in my bag. I was gon leave when you left."

Her father rose from the table, cracking his worn knuckles. Approaching his mid-50s, James was a 6'2" black Adonis, his smooth ebony skin and timeless features not giving his age away, save for the crow's feet beginning to frame his brown eyes. He had made a name for himself in Uptown by carrying a careful combination of his mother's beauty and hosting skills and his father's charisma and hustle. A classic Harlem man, he never left the house looking out of place, and even at his most casual, his style was always pristine. It hadn't always been his plan to take over his father's business, but when the responsibility was thrust upon him, he stepped to the helm with grace and kept things rolling quite nicely. His greatest hope was that he could leave his children something behind like his folks had and instill that same sense of responsibility into them by leading by example and giving them opportunities to hone their work ethics, while still being warm and nurturing their dreams.