Steampunks to the rescue

I had no idea what a "steampunk" was until a few weeks ago. Sometimes I'll bring home the free Seattle CityArts magazine, which then reminds us how old and uncool we've become. Anyway, the last issue had a cover story called the "Steampunk Frontier." I like a city where a lady dressed up like this one doesn't get a second glance in the grocery store. But...huh? What does it mean? Those goggles? The gloves? The long, heavy clothes?

A convention for 1700 steampunks was just held in Seattle; apparently there's a strong following here. The term "steampunk" was first used by author K.W. Jeter (b. 1950) He's written all kinds of dark science fiction for television and movies, and also wrote a sequel to H.G. Wells' story "The Time Machine" where he first used the word. Basically, steampunk is like Victorian science fiction, and they adore old hand-made technology like clock works, locomotives, pulleys and mechanical gadgets. And of course, time travel and Victorian fashions. It all sounds kind of sweet and harmless, like watching TV reruns of "The Wild, Wild, West."

Enter the Museum of History and Industry, a shrine to some of the antique technology steampunks hold dear. The 100-year old Carroll's Jewelery clock outside the front doors of MOHAI, with its golden ticking gears, is a perfect example of the movement's fetish. Last December, it was a cruel blow to the museum when thieves hacked through the casing in the dead of night and gutted the clockworks. But after the theft occurred, the local steampunks held a film festival, fancy dress ball and other events to raise the $10,000+ needed to repair the clock.

After walking by that empty case for months, it's nice to see the clock ticking away again. I will say, the new mechanical works seem to need some tweaking to keep accurate time, but that's no reflection on the generosity of the Seattle steampunk movement.