It doesn’t feel right to close out the year without one more goodbye to Steeplejack. I miss him every day.
Steeplejack had lost touch with some of his old friends, and somehow they found our post in July. I was crushed when we lost Steep, and I promised a proper goodbye post in his honor at a later date. So here we are on December 31, about to close out a year in which we lost some good friends, in addition to our political battles.
Hoping we can all come together – Balloon Juice friends and old friends from real life – to share memories and stores about Steeplejack / aka Burt Bralliar.
Our very own eclare was friends with Steep in real life, long before they reconnected on Balloon Juice. In 2004, Steeplejack put together a 2-part movie list for eclare – they So here’s one last set of movie recommendations from Steeplejack to all of us, via eclare. (pdf) You know I had to remember to add the .pdf notation since Steep isn’s here anymore to remind us to do it!
When I think of Steep, I think of his active participation in everything on Balloon Juice – a million BJ comments, his knowledge, music links, TV shows, and the google fu that helped so many of us so many times. But he was also a great friend. Steep was my anger translator, and when things would get ugly in the back room, or when Cole was being his impossible self at times, Steep was always my biggest cheerleader. Between his “God dammit!”s and his “fuck them, you’re doing a great job, just keep doing what you’re doing”, he really kept me going. Not to mention that he was really funny when we would talk on the phone.
Anyway, enough from me.
I hope some of Steeplejack / Burt’s old friends will join us today, so if any of you have photos to share, please send email to [email protected], and I’ll add them to the post.
That’s (10-year-old Professor) Steeplejack on the right in the back, standing next to his conservative brother. That’s Steep’s brother Anastasio Beaverhausen in front, future proprietor of the famed Sighthound Hall, looking as adorable and dapper as could be.
The two photos below are from Enid, his dear friend.
Here’s an excerpt, but you can read the whole thing at the link (just above).
Burt Brallier, 72, died July 20 at his home in Falls Church, Virginia. He was
a gifted writer, talented computer expert and knowledgeable about film, music,
politics and popular culture.As the son of the Surgeon General of the Air Force, he had an international
upbringing. Born in the Fort Campbell, Kentucky military hospital in 1952, he was
the eldest of three sons of Max and Audrey Bralliar.He spent three of his elementary school years in England, at the Montpelier
School in Ealing, Middlesex. When the family returned to the Chanute Air Force
base in Rantoul, Illinois, he skipped a grade. Three years later, the family moved to
Laughlin Air Force base in Del Rio, Texas, where he completed junior high.He was a voracious reader throughout his life. He also developed a
consuming interest in music, learning to play the electric guitar as a teenager.
Swimming became a passion and he competed competitively throughout his junior
and senior high years.
*No animals were injured in the making of this post, but tears were definitely shed.
How ‘Bout Them Eggs Open Thread
HinTN
Thanks for this and all you do, WG.
Baud
He was valued, but I didn’t realize he was also photogenic. Gone too soon.
sab
@Baud: Me too. I liked him a lot before. Now I see him as a departed heartthrob.
ETA He was always so helpful. Talked luddites through computer problems. Talked out of control threads back down to politeness.
For some reason I thought he was so much older. The voice of wisdom and all.
ETA Also too, I didn’t get the joke of Threadkill Lane until kay explained it, because he never killed a thread in his life. He was one of the reasons I come here.
WaterGirl
I removed the references to the post time. I really did put it up at 2:42, but it posted with an earlier time.
Stick
In Doc’s (Steep’s) loss and the events that sadly have transpired since, I’m reminded of a line from the Canadian folk anthem Four Strong Winds — “If the good times are all gone, then I’m bound to be moving on…”.
rikyrah
Definitely is missed. I miss him and Ozark.
I open the Morning Thread still looking for ‘ blech’.
Baud
@WaterGirl: Not sure what you’re referring to.
eclare
Thank you for this WaterGirl. I miss him every day, too.
laura
I will forever see the daughty Kia come barreling out of Sighthound Hall (like the batmobile out of the bat cave) when thinking of Steeplejack.
Tender Men are the strongest men, and man, was he tender.
sab
@rikyrah: I went to steep for computer problems, and ozark and jr in wva for household maintenance problems.
We have lost a lot of knowledge and sources of advice this year.
Though Jay is still up in Canada commenting down here.
Scout211
He and I had birthdays a few days apart. His was at the end of January 1952. ( I just noticed that his age was also posted in the obit).
He will be missed. What a kind and helpful man.
WereBear
We loved talking animals, as well. Loved his recommendations, on all fronts.
Still miss him.
sab
I had no idea that he was so well-travelled.
Betty Cracker
Steep was a good guy — smart, funny and kind. He was also a stalwart of this place, and it’s just not the same without him.
HinTN
@Baud: Edited my comment. The original post showed 1030 ish as the post time, yet I was the frist comment
ETA – The editing made my comment just drivel. So it goes.
sab
So steep was the tall oldest kid with glasses in back? I had no idea he was the oldest. He never had that bossy oldest sibling vibe.
FelonyGovt
Thanks so much for this, WG. He was such a mainstay of this place.
trollhattan
What a year, and I don’t mean it in a good way.
r.i.p. Steep, fair winds for whatever awaits. Fervently hope you’re bounding along with the hounds.
WaterGirl
I remember the time that Subaru Diane had been trying to find some old song from her childhood on the internet, with no success, possibly only remembering a few phrases, and a little while later Steep popped up in the comments, asking if “this”was it, and it was!
*details are fuzzy, and may be wrong, but it was the perfect example of the kind of thing he did all the time. My google fu is not great.
eemom
I am so sorry I never met the dear man IRL. Damn, he lived right down the road.
What’s the joke of Threadkill Lane?
TaMara
Sigh, been so long posting, I keep getting the formatting wrong, trying again:
I was cleaning out my inbox and somehow I had stashed this video Steep sent me earlier in the summer. I cried harder than I did when I originally watched it. I hope he knew how much his little email missives meant to me…I miss him every day.
WaterGirl
@sab: Yep, Steep was the oldest.
I always thought his brother who comments here was the oldest, until I learned otherwise. He comments here as Anastasio Beaverhausen. I remember the first time I noticed a comment from Anastasio Beaverhausen, telling some travel-related story, and I picked up the phone and called Steep, asking if the was his brother. And of course it was.
Maybe we will learn the origin story for the nym. Anastasio Beaverhausen.
Ohio Mom
I remember when Steep remembered my birthday. I don’t recall mentioning it but I must have (who remembers what they said in comments a year later?) because a year later, he wished me a happy birthday right on schedule.
That’s when I realized he had appointed himself the Official Balloon Juice Record Keeper. He was keeping notes on us, and that made me feel appreciated, seen, and cared for.
delphinium
Per the obit, he definitely had a well-lived life, albeit gone too soon. Will miss his music links, humor, and all of his helpful advice to so many here. RIP Steep!
WTFGhost
To say I’m sorry for your collective loss seems ridiculously inadequate, so, I’ll slip out the back way while y’all are grieving.
Leto
@sab: I looked at his dad’s bio and we shared a number of the same assignments, haunted the same places, albeit many years apart. Small world. Also explains why Steeple was fluent in AF.
AM in NC
Thanks, Water Girl, for the “Our Absent Friends” posts on the sidebar. And thank you for this memorial to Steep. So many great people here (and some now gone).
Thanks, Juicers, for being a part of my life for decades now. John and the gang have created one helluva community.
Phylllis
I harbored a bit of an Internet crush on him. He was so smart, kind, and funny. I regret not making an effort for a meetup when I was regularly traveling to DC.
eclare
@WaterGirl:
Will and Grace reference.
sab
@eemom: The joke was that his comment killed the thread. Which never happened. But he did post a lot in the middle of the night to comatose threads. If they didn’t perk up he blamed himself.
Juju
Steeplejack was a kind, thoughtful and intelligent person, and I miss his presence here. Looking at his memorial it seems we lived in or near some of the same places, though probably not at the same time. That last picture of him looks like it was taken on one of the ferries that goes from island to island in the Outerbanks. If I were to guess it looks like the ferry ride from Hatteras island to Ocracoke island. I wish I had had the chance to meet him in person.
Mousebumples
Steep and Ozark (and many others) are greatly missed. I’m hoping they’re at peace with family, friends, and jackals who have gone before.
Juju
@sab: That must be the reason he seemed to reply to me more often than anyone else. I tend to be later to the comments if not the last comment.
Eolirin
I still don’t have any words.
zhena gogolia
I was in love with Steeplejack without even realizing how handsome he was!
zhena gogolia
@sab: Could you explain it to me?
zhena gogolia
@sab: He and I would be in some arcane discussion of the motivations of Sidney the vicar on Grantchester, and I could go back hours later and find a reply from him. Then I’d reply, and he’d reply again, hours later. It was such fun.
MazeDancer
Steeplejack was among best. The very best, indeed. Ever.
zhena gogolia
In honor of Steep, the gold slacks dance from Pop Gear.
MazeDancer
@zhena gogolia:
Have to admit to having the same reaction.
How like him not to let us know he was a real looker.
WaterGirl
@Stick: So you were a friend of his from way back when?
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: And your conversations about Endeavor!
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Yes — that was so much fun.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: New season of Grantchester is starting soon. We all have to carry on the conversations without him. sob.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Believe me, I think about what he would have said about the newest vicar every time I watch!
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: I love the new vicar. My favorite since Sidney left.
JPL
What a nice tribute and thanks WaterGirl for writing up such a beautiful memorilal. There is an amazing group of individuals here and although the next 4 years will be difficult, I must admit that I found a place to help me get through it.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Yes. Tom never really grabbed me.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: First thought: who the hell is Tom?
Second thought, oh, you must mean Will, you just got his name wrong.
Final thought, oh, zhena always knows actor’s names, Tom must be the actor who plays. Will
edit: Steep would have known who you meant right away.
JPL
@zhena gogolia: The character was flawed like Sydney but a tad to much Woe Is Me type. He definitely would have voted for trump.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Haha, got me. I guess his name was Will. Just shows how blah he was.
zhena gogolia
@JPL: His best episode was the one with his father, and that was because his father was played by Nathaniel Parker.
ETA: I’m considering this not a derailment, because if Steeplejack were here, he’d be joining in.
Candace
I’m not a member of this group but I was a Burt Bralliar groupie. He was my next door neighbor for 2 years and one of my BFFs in Okinawa. We’d come home from Kubasaki HS (Kuba Sock It To Me class of 1969) and listen to vinyl records and drink gallons of iced tea. BTW the “sock it song”was the Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels version. When our senior prom dates ghosted us we went together in his Frankenstein jeep (they took good parts from trashed ones and built a new one- hey they were cheap). I liked champagne and Burt put a bottle on ice in a bowling ball bag!!!! I’d go to dinner at his house and the boys all ate before his folks. They’d entertain me with salad drinking contests etc. We stayed in touch for a good while when our families were transferred and he wrote the most amazing letters which I hold dear. I wish I’d seen him more than I did as an adult – I lived in Hawaii and California while he was in the Southeast. But I ended up caring for my parents and then my sister in that very part of the country not knowing he was in driving distance. Regrets I have more than a few. Burt was funny, kind, crazy and a genius. I don’t really love that song “Starry Starry Night” but this line has been running through my head-“ this world was never meant for one as beautiful as you.“
Thank for indulging me- I’m still processing the fact he’s gone. I’m comforted hearing he was a cherished member of this group.
69ClarkVista
JPL
@zhena gogolia:Actually the comments make me think of Steeplechase.
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia:
My thoughts exactly.
zhena gogolia
@Candace: Thank you! What wonderful memories.
zhena gogolia
As someone said above, he’s one person I would have loved to see at a meetup.
WaterGirl
@Candace:
Thanks so much for sharing all those little stores with us. Loved every tidbit.
Maybe we’ll hear from you again, we all have to stick together. :-)
JPL
@Candace: Thanks for sharing your memories. Now I have tears in my eyes.
eemom
@Candace:
And that is a most beautiful tribute.
Enid (Erno)
@Juju: you are right ferry to Ocracoke.
Stick
Yes – he was a Mobile newspaper colleague and the most erudite person I ever knew (not much of a Hearts player though). Miss him greatly
eclare
I have so many memories of Burt aka Burtio aka President for Life of the Wednesday night movie group. We also had a standing date to meet at El Torero off of North Druid Hills every Friday. Conversations definitely went to odd places after a few margs. “Could Steve outrun a wild turkey?” “Is a shrub a woody bush?” And of course the daily news.
I can still hear his question when my marg ran low, “Can I freshen that up for you, hon?”
One of a kind person. Warm, whip smart, interested in everything, and as he referred to it, he had a “whale brain.” He was an encyclopedia for anything movie, music, tv related. Also a beautiful writer, I have many emails that he sent to me that are by turns laugh out loud funny and poignant.
I was lucky to have known him.
Ben Cisco
I really appreciated Steep. He always brought it during the music threads. Just a really good dude. Miss him.
WaterGirl
@eclare: I so love hearing all these stories, I hope they keep coming.
MazeDancer
Many thanks to all his IRL friends for sharing your memories.
The smiles those memories must bring.
WaterGirl
@MazeDancer: Smiles and tears, but definitely worth it to hear the stories.
WaterGirl
@Enid (Erno): Good guess from Juju.
Omnes Omnibus
This place (interpret as widely as you choose) was better for his presence. Someone else already posted go-go dancers, so I won’t do it again.
Miki
@Candace: Oh. Yes.
eemom
@Enid (Erno):
That’s nice to hear. I’ve been going to Hatteras for decades and been on that ferry many times.
eclare
Burt was also a person with courage. At one party that we both attended, a guy propositioned me and would not leave me alone. He finally said something bordering on rape. Burt told the guy off forcefully, and the guy left me alone for the rest of the night.
Juju
@WaterGirl: Not really a good guess. I’m very familiar with the area and I know that view because I have seen it many times. I wasn’t absolutely certain, but very close to 100% certain. There are coastal areas in Virginia that look almost the same, but the ferries are a bit different.
bjacques
Pouring one out. Wishing him a safe and speedy journey to the Western Lands.
JPL
@eclare: I am so jealous but thanks for sharing. Who did he work for them?
Juju
@eemom: If you’re ever in the area…
JPL
@eclare: I am so jealous but thanks for sharing. Who did he work for then?
eemom
@Juju:
Do you live in the OBX?
eclare
@JPL:
After working at Peachtree Software for many years, before I met him, he became a contract worker. He referred to his recruiter as his data-pimp. Then contract work dried up, and he taught swimming at Dynamo swim club.
BellyCat
Chiming in late to add my love and respect for Steep. Rest In Power!
BellyCat
@eclare: Peachtree Software? Brings back fond memories. :-)
JPL
@eclare: thanks
NotMax
I believe he would have nodded in the affirmative at this.
“Love while alive; don’t expect death to produce talent.”
– Francois Valery
.
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: Are they really go-go dancers if they are not wearing boots?
Prescott Cactus
This all reminds me of an Irish wake… without the ill fitting suits and the naggins of course.
Nukular Biskits
ETA: deleted so I can )(*&)(*^(*&%(*&)( reformat.
Nukular Biskits
(Second attempt):
I can’t recall any direct conversations I had here with Steeplejack but I definitely recall his larger-than-life presence.
The loss is mine.
I haven’t read the comments yet so this has probably already been posted but, if so, here it is again:
Should old acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind?
Should old acquaintance be forgot
In the days of auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne, my dear
For auld lang syne
We’ll drink a cup of kindness yet
For the sake of auld lang syne
And surely, you will buy your cup
And surely, I’ll buy mine!
We’ll take a cup of kindness yet
For the sake of auld lang syne
We two who’ve paddled in the stream
From morning sun ’til night
The seas between us roared and swelled
Since the days of auld lang syne
For old acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind
Should old acquaintance be forgot
For the sake of auld lang syne?
For old acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind
Should old acquaintance be forgot
In the days of auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne, my dear
For auld lang syne
We’ll drink a cup of kindness yet
For the sake of auld lang syne
Lily
Soprano2
I always enjoyed Steep’s comments. He seemed very level-headed – sometimes we could use more of that. I miss him and Ozark a lot. Would that there were more people like them in the world.
eemom
@Nukular Biskits:
Well timed!
Many years ago when my kids were young enough to be home on NYE, my son looked up the actual lyrics so we could sing them at midnight…. 😥
Nukular Biskits
@eemom:
I deleted the first attempt in frustration because I had cut ‘n’ pasted the lyrics from a website … and that royally screwed up the formatting.
In any case, not to take away from this memorial to Steeplejack, but this is a good time to remember all lost friends & family, IMHO.
And, in my case, I will be toasting quite a few tonight instead of ringing in the New Year.
Lastly, don’t tell her I said this but Watergirl definitely deserves kudos for doing this … and putting up with Cole. LOL
Juju
@eemom: I live in eastern NC, but my family has a house in Avon.
Omnes Omnibus
@WaterGirl: Okay, fine.
Omnes Omnibus
@Nukular Biskits: The toast “To absent friends” fits here.
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: Perfect! I feel certain that Steep would feel seen with that one.
Almost Retired
I’m late to this conversation, but I always thought that Steep was one of those commenters who would say the same thing if the discussion was in a bar in real life instead of online. He didn’t hide behind the anonymity of BJ. He treated us all like we were all IRL friends.
Nukular Biskits
@Omnes Omnibus @WaterGirl
It may seem a bit trite, but I’m throwing fur babies into that “absent friends” group also.
Watergirl knows what I mean.
surfk9
RIP Steep! He was a voice of reason that we should all aspire to emulate.
BlueGuitarist
Thinking fondly of Steep, and other juicers not forgotten.
keep on keeping on, y’all, as Curtis Mayfield would say.
Love all y’all
Elizabelle
Steep is irreplaceable. Erudite, gracious, generous, a real gentleman. Not a surprise he had such good and long-lasting friendships beyond the screen, too.
Did we also lose Amir Khalid last year? I think of them both often. Brave journalists, cat dads, clear-eyed observers of the current and past scene. Amir had his guitars, and Steep had … us, and probably a lot of other cool stuff too. Definitely the family at Sighthound Hall, and out West. (Steep would post as he flew out and back. What did he call that? He had a phrase.)
Anyway, miss them both, and will not forget either, or the other jackals who have left this world.
It is sad to leave friends behind in the previous year. Live, live, live.
Miss Bianca
Steep had a whimsical way with words that I will always cherish, in addition to all his other virtues. I always loved his tales of the House Cat, and the hounds of Sighthound Hall. So sorry to have to note his passing.
Enid (Erno)
I’ve known Burt since 1978 when he sat next to me during a flight home to Atlanta. When the flight ended he asked if he could call me if he ever got to Atlanta again. I said yes. That was the beginning of a lifelong relationship and friendship. We were together for the next 15 plus years. After our relationship ended we still kept our friendship and we were in touch almost every day. I’m so glad to see he was loved by so many people. After he died I read your posts and they gave me some solace so thank you all for those posts and for your caring about him.
Elizabelle
@Miss Bianca: The housecat, at her workstation, with her heated throw.
I hope they are together again.
K-Mo
A good person, a generous multi-talented, a life well lived. Pouring one out.
Lily
He ‘played’ such great songs, all kinds. Always melodic. I wish I had a list of them.
I only remember this one for sure, Coconut Grove. (The dreamy kind he sometimes played late at night.)
His choices always set a mood, or occasionally picked up on another commenter’s emotions in a supportive way.
WaterGirl
@Enid (Erno): I never knew how you guys met. Sweet beginning. And a lifelong partner and friend. You were both very lucky. Very sorry for your loss.
WaterGirl
@Lily: Nodding in agreement as I listen to the song.
Stick
@Enid (Erno): I think no one was able to bring Doc more comfort and peace of mind and soul than you, dear Enid. Thank you so much for all that you did. Stick
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: Thanks so much for this thread.
Juju
@Enid (Erno): Did you take the picture of him on the NC ferry?
Miss Bianca
@Enid (Erno): aww…thanks for joining the virtual wake here.
Enid (Erno)
@Stick: thank you for saying that. I know Satbod was very important to him and he loved you, Nat, and Sherry. I hope I spelled that right.
Anastasio Beaverhausen
I’ve been reluctant to post because it’s impossible to convey Burt’s importance in my life. For the last twenty years I saw him probably every week and spoke or texted more than that. We would sit and watch golf, over a bottle of “swing oil,” talking about everything and nothing. We shared inside jokes from the Aubrey/Maturin novels, neither one needing to explain to the other. We would lounge with family on the back porch, Burt with Chip’s bowling ball head in his lap, never getting enough scritches behind the ear. “Uncle Bitsy” playing “frog and fly” with our kids, lunging at them as they walked past. I can still hear the laughter and see the smiles. I see or hear things every day and think, “I need to tell Burt about that.”
One representative anecdote I will share is when I came out to my family. Sadly, I was almost 30 and I had been hiding it. As a result I was distant from them and they missed out on most of what was going on in my life. The response from conservative brother was, “Yeah, it worried Mom a lot.” And, “We always suspected…” Suspected? As in I am a suspect, in a crime? Needless to say, my interactions with him have been few and far between for many years, for many reasons. Burt on the other hand responded with, “Are you seeing anyone?” Which, for me, opened the door and allowed me to share fully with him from then on.
Just before we moved to London our friends hosted a cookout in early July. Burt and I found ourselves on the edge of the yard at one point and he told me how much he enjoyed our close friendship and how proud he was of me. I will never forget him saying, “You’re a great dad.” It was validation I needed from someone I respected. We talked about him visiting and the need to get his passport and it was then I thought, this is the end of an era and it might be the last time I see him. I just didn’t know he would be gone in two weeks. I am very glad to see all the fond memories and kind comments here. Being late to Balloon Juice I think I missed out on his accounts of life at Sighthound Hall. If anyone would like to email me with posts I would love to see them.
And as the late Queen said, “Grief is the price we pay for love.” And boy am I grieving. I hope everyone has a peaceful New Year.
eclare
@Anastasio Beaverhausen:
Thank you for posting your memories.
WaterGirl
@Anastasio Beaverhausen: I’m so glad you guys got to have that talk at the cookout. He loved you and the kids and Chip so much. We would talk about how it was the end of an era and what he would do when you were all across the pond.
A good soul and a great friend.
zhena gogolia
@Anastasio Beaverhausen: Thank you so much. He was such a kind, interesting, brilliant man.
Anyway
@Anastasio Beaverhausen: Another Jackal who appreciated steep’s comments and kindness and will miss him dearly.
You asked for specifics – this may be a small one – one time when he was house-sitting he mentioned watching Bluey on your AppleTV setup. I had never heard of it and looked it up after he mentioned it. He would also mention trips to the airport to pickup and dropoff family.
As it’s NY special memory for me is that he and I had a small back’n’forth about the correct way to open champagne – no loud pops, no liquid gushing out etc. RIP, Burt.
Elizabelle
@Anastasio Beaverhausen: My condolences. Wonderful, wonderful big brother.
I am glad your children are old enough to remember him.
May you all have a happier New Year.
Ohio Mom
@Anastasio Beaverhausen: Your stories add another dimension to my memories of Steep. Thank you.
I remember when he talked about your plans to move to England and the pang I felt for him, knowing how much he would miss you and your family being nearby. You two had a friendship as siblings that was enviable. What a loss to you!
I hope you can stop by here in the comments now and again.
Best wishes for the new year.