Steampunk Dollhouse Dispatch: In Which We Mourn a Friend and Embark on a Bittersweet Adventure

Hello literary listeners and welcome…

Sorry! That’s the wrong intro! Anyway, I’m skipping my usual Thursday post because I honestly didn’t have the energy for research and I have something else to talk about that’s more important. If you weren’t/aren’t a listener of my podcast, then this may not matter to you but it matters a great deal to me.

When I started my podcast in spring 2017 I had no idea what I was doing but I had enthusiasm and I started contacting other steampunk podcasts. I met some amazing people that way, including Flavio Faz, the co-host of Texas Steampunk Connection, along with his partner in crime, Thax, the Gentleman Adventurer. Flavio was kind, and helpful, and always treated me with respect. I liked him immediately.

We started running bumpers on each other’s shows and we finally met in person at Steampunk November 2017. We only had a few minutes to talk because I was heading out but we got to spend real time together that December at Wild West Victorian Fest. We had a conversation that was shared on both our podcasts feeds and it was lovely.

We remained friends from a distance for several years and then my show finally collapsed into indefinite hiatus. In the meantime, Texas Steampunk Connection had transitioned to a Facebook Live show that streamed every other Tuesday and added Jack from Steam Chest as a new co-host On December 1st, 2020, Flavio contacted me at 7:45 on a Tuesday night and asked me if I would come on the show as a guest host because Jack couldn’t be on. I said yes and asked what time they were going live. It was 8PM, y’all. I had 15 minutes to make myself look like a human being. I’m glad I did though, because it was just so much fun. I came back in on March 9, 2021 and talked steampunk with Flavio and Thax.

The last time Flavio contacted me to guest host was at the beginning of September but I had to say no because I had homework that was due that night. I really wish I hadn’t said no because Flavio passed away on September 30th, 2021. He was 52. I found out on October 1st, and it felt like a punch to the gut. This kind, gentle, good man was gone and I never really got to know him as well as I should have.

After Flavio’s passing I was concerned that the show would stop. Flavio was usually at the helm and given what Thax was going to be going through I thought they might pack it in. I offered to help Thax and Jack until they got back on their feet and found a new, permanent co-host. Once he got his bearings, Thax set up to start broadcasting again and asked me if I wanted to be a guest for November 2nd. It was a really great time and at the end, after we stopped broadcasting, Thax asked me to join him and Jack full-time. I said yes immediately. I mean, how could I not? They’re wonderful to talk to and they make me laugh, which is something I really need right now.

So this is where Agent Bluestocking and the Steampunk Dollhouse currently stand. The amount of work that I was putting into my own show–and it was a lot of work despite the poor quality–was just unsustainable. But being on this show, where it’s just 3 or 4 people who shoot the shit and talk steampunk, that works for me.

And don’t worry; I am still the post-apocalyptic librarian. Let’s just say that I’ve traded in my bunker for an airship, the better to spread the good word about the steampunk written word. We all have homework that we bring to each episode so I will have plenty of time to bring you the books that I think you should read, without the two hour rambling. I hope that you’ll join us on this new adventure.

And Flavio, I miss you, brother.