Clowns and Steampunkers

Just when I thought things couldn’t get any weirder, I met a chainsaw wielding clown.

I was invited by Semplicemente Steampunk to join them for a cultural night in the town of Altopascio with food and live music. That’s where I met a unique family of clowns that animated the square. I jumped at the chance to ask them what they were about, and the answer was simple. The Clowns were them and they were the Clowns. It was something they felt as much as they did.

  I had a nice chat with the Clown Family and met Banano, the magical doll that can enter your dreams. As I sat at my desk hoping for a book sale, I began to write the semi-fictional, semi-autobiographical account of how Pepita, Babba, Alice and Davy met Banano and brought him home. I must say, their unique take on life certainly inspired me to write a crazy piece of flash fiction entitled Banano and the Magical Market of Gently Used Things.

But what do Clowns and Steampunkers have that unites them? On the surface they seem so different. The Steampunkers are formally dressed in beautiful, Victorian age costumes. They have everything from posh tea-sets to time traveling bracelets to equipment to explore the wilds. The Clown were garish and bizarre and there were only two and a half of them. But they had a chainsaw and a love of the spectacular. I think that’s what unites the Clowns and Steampunkers; the desire to be who they are without judgement. There’s probably a little life lesson in there somewhere …

On Saturday you can read Banano in the Magical Market in Italian and English!