The Author and 'Spike' the Crow
City of Gold
A Civilization with a Midas touch
Driven by an ego that it loved too much
Golden spikes and platinum spires
Forged in the furnaces of oil fires
Mythical City of El Dorado
Citizenry turned desperado
All they touched was turned to gold
Lifeless metal cruel and cold
Gone now are the golden poppies
Once that ringed the foothill Rockies
Forests first and deserts after
Love of gold has brought disaster
Golden slippers golden stairs
Climb so high that no one cares
New gold watch and golden rule
Old King Midas was a fool
Soon enough the sand creeps in
Cities choke in golden sin
Love of power taught in schools
Iron Pyrite gold of fools
When finally comes the golden hour
Nature shows her mighty power
Harnessing the winds of change
Here she comes to rearrange
Joseph John Racano
Copyright@JosephJohnRacano/09/14/19
Witches and Saints
'Stand with your back to the Roasting Root
Jailer lights the fire with a tall jack boot
Never get a chance to speak your side of it is moot
Prepare to meet your fate at the Roasting Root'
As another one bites the dust, and with others being added to the list of the accused by the hour, one cannot help but marvel at the ability of society to break down as rapidly as embers from a Salem fire.
It is obvious that the current climate of social fear being wrought across 2017 America is at a level not seen since 1939 Germany and has de-evolved into nothing more than a witch hunt. For instance, how many saints can you name? Saint Francis, my favorite. Saint Joseph, like the aspirin for children, Saint Bonaventure, I think that's a school or an amusement park... But really if you can name them on one hand you may be a saint yourself.
But now how many are not saints? All the rest of us, I would say! We are, by the millions, wickedly dirty little creatures with many-a-skeleton in our closets. And don't tell me you didn't. You know what you did. Lying is only lying to yourself, because we don't really care- we'll likely get to you eventually, anyway.
So here we are, attacking, accusing, ruining lives and careers (and don't misunderstand me, some of these bastards deserve it), but what is really happening here is a breakdown of society, a horrible and unhealthy climate of fear of being the next to have our shirt stripped from our back, revealing 'the mark' that will send us to the burning stake.
And it is all disproportionately affecting the left end of the political spectrum, with all of us winding up the losers. And then there's the role of money. A comedian whips it out in front of a couple of colleagues and flogs the mule, and heads to the gallows, while another, wealthier comedian known to be a serial rapist, drugged and molested untold numbers of women over the course of a career only to return them home, soiled, to their families -along with money for a car or college- and still he walks free, due to huge money and influence.
But one thing is to be sure, with the escalating witch hunt now racing across the social fabric of America, soon, the only ones not in jail will be the jailers. It is easily enough done; government just keeps on collecting all manor of information, every thing about every one. All to be used one day when the process of social data mining finally stops at the station of our own little town, then to be pored over until the jailers find something, anything, they can use. And then you are denounced, more people come forward, and you are tarred, feathered, tied to the roasting root and burned. And on to the next.
JR
12/15/17
'Stand with your back to the Roasting Root
Jailer lights the fire with a tall jack boot
Never get a chance to speak your side of it is moot
Prepare to meet your fate at the Roasting Root'
As another one bites the dust, and with others being added to the list of the accused by the hour, one cannot help but marvel at the ability of society to break down as rapidly as embers from a Salem fire.
It is obvious that the current climate of social fear being wrought across 2017 America is at a level not seen since 1939 Germany and has de-evolved into nothing more than a witch hunt. For instance, how many saints can you name? Saint Francis, my favorite. Saint Joseph, like the aspirin for children, Saint Bonaventure, I think that's a school or an amusement park... But really if you can name them on one hand you may be a saint yourself.
But now how many are not saints? All the rest of us, I would say! We are, by the millions, wickedly dirty little creatures with many-a-skeleton in our closets. And don't tell me you didn't. You know what you did. Lying is only lying to yourself, because we don't really care- we'll likely get to you eventually, anyway.
So here we are, attacking, accusing, ruining lives and careers (and don't misunderstand me, some of these bastards deserve it), but what is really happening here is a breakdown of society, a horrible and unhealthy climate of fear of being the next to have our shirt stripped from our back, revealing 'the mark' that will send us to the burning stake.
And it is all disproportionately affecting the left end of the political spectrum, with all of us winding up the losers. And then there's the role of money. A comedian whips it out in front of a couple of colleagues and flogs the mule, and heads to the gallows, while another, wealthier comedian known to be a serial rapist, drugged and molested untold numbers of women over the course of a career only to return them home, soiled, to their families -along with money for a car or college- and still he walks free, due to huge money and influence.
But one thing is to be sure, with the escalating witch hunt now racing across the social fabric of America, soon, the only ones not in jail will be the jailers. It is easily enough done; government just keeps on collecting all manor of information, every thing about every one. All to be used one day when the process of social data mining finally stops at the station of our own little town, then to be pored over until the jailers find something, anything, they can use. And then you are denounced, more people come forward, and you are tarred, feathered, tied to the roasting root and burned. And on to the next.
JR
12/15/17
The Art Shall Set Ye Free
When they came for the others I hid inside my room
I'd rather be a coward than admit our nation's doom
The weapons and the uniforms the salivating zeroes
Who looked upon the dregs of war and fancied them as heroes
The skies grew dark the hour late the oceans void of life
If you wanted to get married then Trump would choose your wife
They sampled all our DNA and built up huge archives
They tortured children in our name to save American lives
The beast was risen as a prison art was called a sin
But in the end they could not rend the souls of those within
Nameless men who followed orders, shooting families at the borders
Trillion dollar tax cut while the poor all scrounge for quarters
When they finally came for me, they couldn't understand
Why I wielded bright pastels melting in my hand
They clanged upon the dungeon door and lo what did they see?
The body still remained in chain but the art had set me free!
Joseph John Racano
Mortal Men
Global warming perfect storm
Self destruction true to form
Seven billion feel the helion
Why provoke our bright chameleon
Say goodbye to birds and bees
Native and invasive trees
Give the grays a friendly last look
Someone stream it 'LIVE' on Facebook
Mother Earth there are no words
We divided you by thirds
Invented god for his permission
Permission for our selfish mission
Now it's time to say goodbye
Forgive me if the cosmos cry
In our place one boom box spinning
Work of fiction shows us winning
Out into the night eternal
Cold and empty, nothing vernal
Mighty planet, human pox
Same location, tiny rocks
Wish I may and wish I might
Wake up to tomorrows light
Forever once come 'round again
Make us better mortal men
Joseph John Racano
Photo (above): Racano
Balance
I was out on the porch with my hound dog blue
When a stranger showed up with his hair askew
I looked at the man with a great suspicion
And pointed down the road toward the old stone mission
Everybody knows that a stranger can’t be trusted
Especially one obviously broke and busted
You do it for your family, you do it for yourself
Strangers have a poor state of mental health
I was working in the barn re-shoeing a horse
When I heard a person yelling, and at me, of course
I opened up the doors and saw a man from Syria
I like the people fine but they carry diphtheria
Everybody knows those people carry diseases
Especially in the summer with the downwind breezes
You do it for your family, you do it for safety
Syrians are whack, what’s got into them lately
I was standing in the street looking at my mail
When approached by a ninja with a pony tail
I’m only being honest, I have this abrasion
Ever since Pearl Harbor when I talk to an Asian
Everybody knows those people are cunning
Especially in December if you see them running
You do it for your family, you try keep it steady
Asian folks are harmless but you always should be ready
I was working in the driveway underneath my car
When I heard a bunch of screaming from a nearby bar
Sure enough I found myself conversing with a zombie
Never mind the Asians, those undead were gonna bomb me
Everybody knows the undead are cannibals
Especially when they’re hungry and they can’t find any animals
You do it for your family, you try to keep your distance
Zombies have a place but still you have to show resistance
I was on my way to chapel when accosted by a devil
The redheads with a pitchfork took it to another level
I said I was an atheist, I did not believe in Satan
I tried to put a stop to any hate he was creatin’
Everybody knows that the devil is an asshole
Especially on Christmas when it’s hard to find a bad soul
You do it for your family, you try to use your brain
If you believe in Satan you are certified insane
Finally on New Years I stargazed an asteroid
Gaining like a freight train and the world might be destroyed
Using social media we all jumped with a heft
Moved the planet just enough, it passed us to the left
Everybody knows a comet only brings you doom
Why do comets ever even come out of their room?
But they do it for their families, do it for their wives
A comet on the job will have you running for your lives
I hope this little poem is something all can understand
Just because we’re different don’t dismiss us out of hand
For everything a place on Earth, for every place a thing
Winter Summer Spring and Fall, it’s all a balance thing
Joseph John Racano
12/20/15
Balance
I was out on the porch with my hound dog blue
When a stranger showed up with his hair askew
I looked at the man with a great suspicion
And pointed down the road toward the old stone mission
Everybody knows that a stranger can’t be trusted
Especially one obviously broke and busted
You do it for your family, you do it for yourself
Strangers have a poor state of mental health
I was working in the barn re-shoeing a horse
When I heard a person yelling, and at me, of course
I opened up the doors and saw a man from Syria
I like the people fine but they carry diphtheria
Everybody knows those people carry diseases
Especially in the summer with the downwind breezes
You do it for your family, you do it for safety
Syrians are whack, what’s got into them lately
I was standing in the street looking at my mail
When approached by a ninja with a pony tail
I’m only being honest, I have this abrasion
Ever since Pearl Harbor when I talk to an Asian
Everybody knows those people are cunning
Especially in December if you see them running
You do it for your family, you try keep it steady
Asian folks are harmless but you always should be ready
I was working in the driveway underneath my car
When I heard a bunch of screaming from a nearby bar
Sure enough I found myself conversing with a zombie
Never mind the Asians, those undead were gonna bomb me
Everybody knows the undead are cannibals
Especially when they’re hungry and they can’t find any animals
You do it for your family, you try to keep your distance
Zombies have a place but still you have to show resistance
I was on my way to chapel when accosted by a devil
The redheads with a pitchfork took it to another level
I said I was an atheist, I did not believe in Satan
I tried to put a stop to any hate he was creatin’
Everybody knows that the devil is an asshole
Especially on Christmas when it’s hard to find a bad soul
You do it for your family, you try to use your brain
If you believe in Satan you are certified insane
Finally on New Years I stargazed an asteroid
Gaining like a freight train and the world might be destroyed
Using social media we all jumped with a heft
Moved the planet just enough, it passed us to the left
Everybody knows a comet only brings you doom
Why do comets ever even come out of their room?
But they do it for their families, do it for their wives
A comet on the job will have you running for your lives
I hope this little poem is something all can understand
Just because we’re different don’t dismiss us out of hand
For everything a place on Earth, for every place a thing
Winter Summer Spring and Fall, it’s all a balance thing
Joseph John Racano
12/20/15
John Deer & Co.
Nobody knows where they came from
and nobody knows where they go
The only thing certain is planet’s start hurtin’
When John Deer and company mow
Some say they came from an asteroid
Some from out further in space
But somehow they got here
And now, with the John Deer
Are mowing all over the place
Turning savannah to desert
Forests to wide open plain
Gasoline used in the John Deer
prevents any possible future of rain
John Deer and company
What a cacophony
Someone please tell me
Why all this is happening
John Deer and Company
Thank you for calling we
Hope to get back to you
After the tractor pull
After the land was all settled
The tallest of plants one inch high
They burned all the rest in a kettle
With smoke drifting up to the sky
And as we dozed off for the evening
We heard the John Deer people say:
“Lookit them stars that go way off to mars”,
and
“I hope we can mow it someday”
They all disappeared, John Deer people
As suddenly as they had come
Leaving behind the Earth in a bind
Withering under the sun
Off to the stars they went soaring
Seeking new worlds they could mow
Leaving our nation to deforestation
Covered in nuclear snow
John Deer and company
What a cacophony
Someone please tell me
Why all this is happening
John Deer and Company
Thank you for calling we
Hope to get back to you
After the tractor pull
And that, boys and girls is the story
Of why when John Deer went to space
All who came after found only disaster
and nature was gone with no trace
Now take what you learned here this evening
And head for your grandfather’s shop
Dismantle his mower destroy the leaf blower
It’s time for this bullsh1t to stop!
Joseph John Racano
12/9/15
Nobody knows where they came from
and nobody knows where they go
The only thing certain is planet’s start hurtin’
When John Deer and company mow
Some say they came from an asteroid
Some from out further in space
But somehow they got here
And now, with the John Deer
Are mowing all over the place
Turning savannah to desert
Forests to wide open plain
Gasoline used in the John Deer
prevents any possible future of rain
John Deer and company
What a cacophony
Someone please tell me
Why all this is happening
John Deer and Company
Thank you for calling we
Hope to get back to you
After the tractor pull
After the land was all settled
The tallest of plants one inch high
They burned all the rest in a kettle
With smoke drifting up to the sky
And as we dozed off for the evening
We heard the John Deer people say:
“Lookit them stars that go way off to mars”,
and
“I hope we can mow it someday”
They all disappeared, John Deer people
As suddenly as they had come
Leaving behind the Earth in a bind
Withering under the sun
Off to the stars they went soaring
Seeking new worlds they could mow
Leaving our nation to deforestation
Covered in nuclear snow
John Deer and company
What a cacophony
Someone please tell me
Why all this is happening
John Deer and Company
Thank you for calling we
Hope to get back to you
After the tractor pull
And that, boys and girls is the story
Of why when John Deer went to space
All who came after found only disaster
and nature was gone with no trace
Now take what you learned here this evening
And head for your grandfather’s shop
Dismantle his mower destroy the leaf blower
It’s time for this bullsh1t to stop!
Joseph John Racano
12/9/15
Story of Old Big Muskie
This is the story of Old Big Muskie
Thirteen thousand tonnes and dam was she rusty
Operated by an inbred with a red pickup truck
And the mind of a backward midwest clusterfuck
The summer of love, 1969
Somebody built this, a donkeys behind
With no idea how to live on this Earth
Without digging holes just to see what they’re worth
Rocks in the shovel and rocks in his head
Industrial accidents co-workers dead
Muskie dug more than the Panama canal
In the age of destruction and oh-so banal
When melting and warming had taken its toll
Muskie dug up her last mile of coal
And sat as a monument to monumental stupidity
Till came forth one day a brief moment of lucidity
The day when the owner got sick of the crap
And turned good Ol’ Muskie into 15,000 tonnes of scrap
They notched her and drilled her and planted the charges
Breaking the hearts of the captains of barges
Boom went the dynamite, clang went the boom
Heard it from ten miles away in my room
They sold off old Muskie and shut down the quarry
Now some old coot runs a duck boat safari
And all the old fossils who worked at the rock shop
Meet every morning for coffee at quickstop
Telling their lies to whomever will listen
About some fictitious pre-world war two mission
Lamenting the sadness of a world that’s gone solar
With few teeth between them, perhaps just a molar
But glory and pride still burn bright in their eyes
It probably will till the last of them dies
And as they drift off to construction sites dusty
They look down from heaven and smile on Old Muskie
Joseph John Racano
9/27/15
A World
A world coalesced in the vastness of space
Perfect in form and in content and place
Unknowable forces used seasoning shakers
To sprinkle in stardust becoming our makers
These forces departed unfortunately
Could not stay to watch there was somewhere to be
So the world started turning without any help
There were no search engines, no google, no yelp
But visiting asteroids brought water and brine
The impact sent skyward a full moon to shine
And once every month it was fully renewed
The basis for lovers at midnight when viewed
Soon violins sang the background for birds
And species who covered the plains in great herds
Ahead of them storms blew a wind of true love
As life-giving waters rained down from above
With all of this giving the Universe gave
It never required repayment or slave
Totally mute did the stars above stay
Even when mankind was drifting away
Saving a tree was a radical plot
Clear cutting forests, alas, it was not
Many great speeches, lip service to change
The Great halls of power would not rearrange
At long last the garden grew withered and dry
Awakening people to finally ask why
There at the crossroad concern on our face
A dwindling oasis so far out in space
The answer came through on the wings of a bird
Why should the children be seen and not heard?
All our world leaders have miserably failed
Replace them with children, get your letter mailed!
*Dear (your president's name here)
You have done nothing but screw up our planet and our people and I feel it is time for you to go. There are people in many places all speaking different languages but all wanting the same thing: fresh air, sunshine, clean water, and night skies bright with stars that shine like jewels. I am afraid I must insist that the hour is late, you have had your chance and you have failed miserably while accepting no responsibility whatsoever.
Your services will no longer be required. You are hereby directed to relinquish your position and all power to the elementary school children nearest to your current location. Sorry it didn't work out.
-Joseph Racano, Citizen
Planet Earth, Milky Way
August 28th, 2015
Joseph John Racano
A world coalesced in the vastness of space
Perfect in form and in content and place
Unknowable forces used seasoning shakers
To sprinkle in stardust becoming our makers
These forces departed unfortunately
Could not stay to watch there was somewhere to be
So the world started turning without any help
There were no search engines, no google, no yelp
But visiting asteroids brought water and brine
The impact sent skyward a full moon to shine
And once every month it was fully renewed
The basis for lovers at midnight when viewed
Soon violins sang the background for birds
And species who covered the plains in great herds
Ahead of them storms blew a wind of true love
As life-giving waters rained down from above
With all of this giving the Universe gave
It never required repayment or slave
Totally mute did the stars above stay
Even when mankind was drifting away
Saving a tree was a radical plot
Clear cutting forests, alas, it was not
Many great speeches, lip service to change
The Great halls of power would not rearrange
At long last the garden grew withered and dry
Awakening people to finally ask why
There at the crossroad concern on our face
A dwindling oasis so far out in space
The answer came through on the wings of a bird
Why should the children be seen and not heard?
All our world leaders have miserably failed
Replace them with children, get your letter mailed!
*Dear (your president's name here)
You have done nothing but screw up our planet and our people and I feel it is time for you to go. There are people in many places all speaking different languages but all wanting the same thing: fresh air, sunshine, clean water, and night skies bright with stars that shine like jewels. I am afraid I must insist that the hour is late, you have had your chance and you have failed miserably while accepting no responsibility whatsoever.
Your services will no longer be required. You are hereby directed to relinquish your position and all power to the elementary school children nearest to your current location. Sorry it didn't work out.
-Joseph Racano, Citizen
Planet Earth, Milky Way
August 28th, 2015
Joseph John Racano
The Two-Bird Lady of Morro Bay
The two-bird lady lived in Morro Bay
Her one bird was yellow and the other was gray
Her shirt was happy and her smile was fair
They took long walks in the cool night air
They held their peanuts in the one free hand
And also ate crackers, but they found them bland
One bird talked while the other one sang
And one played dead when she said 'bang bang!'
One birdie was an Amazon, and one a Yellow Nape
I barely kept my fingers when I fed them both a grape
Hello Mr. Polly, can the birdie say hello?
The parrots answered back, 'is that the only word you know?'
The lady only shook her head, she'd heard it all before
Never underestimate a parrot or Macaw
These birds are both amazing, you should get them on a show
The lady mouthed without a sound two words, she said 'I know'
So there I was a human being, outsmarted by two birds
The lady shrugged her shoulders and it loosened crispy turds
I look for them on weekends when the town blocks off the street
Someday I'll get a bird myself, perhaps a parakeet!
Joseph John Racano
7/29/15
The two-bird lady lived in Morro Bay
Her one bird was yellow and the other was gray
Her shirt was happy and her smile was fair
They took long walks in the cool night air
They held their peanuts in the one free hand
And also ate crackers, but they found them bland
One bird talked while the other one sang
And one played dead when she said 'bang bang!'
One birdie was an Amazon, and one a Yellow Nape
I barely kept my fingers when I fed them both a grape
Hello Mr. Polly, can the birdie say hello?
The parrots answered back, 'is that the only word you know?'
The lady only shook her head, she'd heard it all before
Never underestimate a parrot or Macaw
These birds are both amazing, you should get them on a show
The lady mouthed without a sound two words, she said 'I know'
So there I was a human being, outsmarted by two birds
The lady shrugged her shoulders and it loosened crispy turds
I look for them on weekends when the town blocks off the street
Someday I'll get a bird myself, perhaps a parakeet!
Joseph John Racano
7/29/15
Green White & Blue
It’s time to change our Pepsi Flag
We don’t need the corporate tag
Take the red out, straight and true
White for clouds, the sky is blue
One new flag, good for all seasons
For our own good and mental health reasons
Maybe trade the red for green
Green for trees so rarely seen
Topped with big white puffy clouds
Take us far away from crowds
Crowds can spoil an open view
Raise the flag, green white and blue
Run those colors up a pole
Give back all the land we stole
Let the buffalo run wild and free
That’s a flag for you and me
Take the one down on the moon
Someone else will be there soon
Fly the new one o’er skid row
They may be poor, but they’re honest though
Let that flag snap in the wind
War on nature, we rescind
Take the red out straight and true
Salute the flag, green white and blue!
Joseph John Racano
The Great Champion
The Boat Launch Ramp
When my dogs are dank and damp
you can often blame the Boat-launch Ramp
The panting tongue that droops to sea
which for some means work, but sets us free
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
A place to go get dank and damp
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
For all those days I missed at camp
A place to splash, go fetch the stick
Leave behind both flea and tick
Bite at leaves, chase at crabs
Watch out for those barnacle stabs
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
A place to go get dank and damp
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
For all those days I missed at camp
Joseph John Racano
The Boat Launch Ramp
When my dogs are dank and damp
you can often blame the Boat-launch Ramp
The panting tongue that droops to sea
which for some means work, but sets us free
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
A place to go get dank and damp
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
For all those days I missed at camp
A place to splash, go fetch the stick
Leave behind both flea and tick
Bite at leaves, chase at crabs
Watch out for those barnacle stabs
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
A place to go get dank and damp
The Boat-launch Ramp, the Boat-launch Ramp
For all those days I missed at camp
Joseph John Racano
Making Headway
Gather ‘round the radio
It’s time for some good news
A scientist say’s in two years
Have any head you choose
In something of a breakthrough
A Frankenstein-like clone
Decided to replace a head
connecting veins and bone
If this seems idiotic
I’d have to disagree
Ugly people now can join
A model agency
Imagine your portfolio
A standout at a glance
The head can be from Tokyo
The body out of France
Rethink decapitation
It just may be for you
A person now can change their head
As easy as their shoe
Walking down the runway
Looking left and right
One head says good morning
The other says goodnight
One mouth says I love you
The other says drop dead
Just a few advantages to having
more than just one head
Plop you in a barber’s chair
Strap you in real tight
Say goodbye to your old hair
You’ll be a blonde tonight
It took the brightest in the field
to get the science done
Now we can unscrew our heads
and lunacy has won
Joseph John Racano
Gather ‘round the radio
It’s time for some good news
A scientist say’s in two years
Have any head you choose
In something of a breakthrough
A Frankenstein-like clone
Decided to replace a head
connecting veins and bone
If this seems idiotic
I’d have to disagree
Ugly people now can join
A model agency
Imagine your portfolio
A standout at a glance
The head can be from Tokyo
The body out of France
Rethink decapitation
It just may be for you
A person now can change their head
As easy as their shoe
Walking down the runway
Looking left and right
One head says good morning
The other says goodnight
One mouth says I love you
The other says drop dead
Just a few advantages to having
more than just one head
Plop you in a barber’s chair
Strap you in real tight
Say goodbye to your old hair
You’ll be a blonde tonight
It took the brightest in the field
to get the science done
Now we can unscrew our heads
and lunacy has won
Joseph John Racano
Festival without a Clam
Man from Pismo, Pismo Man
His beach is famous for the clam
But Pismo’s Clam went on the lamb
You have no clams, Mr. Pismo Man
See the children how they ran
Ran to dig for Pismo Clam
But all they found within the sand
Were empty shells you placed by hand
Man from Pismo, Pismo Man
Beach made famous by the clam
But you won’t get to fill your can
All you’ll get here is a tan
Grandpa filled his old Ford van
Fed his hogs with Pismo’s Clam
Now the Clam fest is a sham
In the end, the hog was man
Man from Pismo, Pismo Man
Hide the truth long as you can
Come to clamfest, bring the fam
But no more clams, it’s only sand
Joseph John Racano
*How delusional to hold a Pismo Clam Festival when there are no more clams. Rather than have the children dig up empty clam shells, they should be shown the peril of the greed of their mothers and fathers and grandparents. Tell them where their clams went.
Man from Pismo, Pismo Man
His beach is famous for the clam
But Pismo’s Clam went on the lamb
You have no clams, Mr. Pismo Man
See the children how they ran
Ran to dig for Pismo Clam
But all they found within the sand
Were empty shells you placed by hand
Man from Pismo, Pismo Man
Beach made famous by the clam
But you won’t get to fill your can
All you’ll get here is a tan
Grandpa filled his old Ford van
Fed his hogs with Pismo’s Clam
Now the Clam fest is a sham
In the end, the hog was man
Man from Pismo, Pismo Man
Hide the truth long as you can
Come to clamfest, bring the fam
But no more clams, it’s only sand
Joseph John Racano
*How delusional to hold a Pismo Clam Festival when there are no more clams. Rather than have the children dig up empty clam shells, they should be shown the peril of the greed of their mothers and fathers and grandparents. Tell them where their clams went.
A Poem for Six Grandfathers
We’re coming for you, Rushmore
To cast your dust on the desert floor
Our great-grandchildren made dirt poor
And even we don’t know what for
Take away your timelessness
Replace it with our crime business
Give disillusioned forefathers
a vista on our mindlessness
Mountain called Six Grandfathers
You cry for truth, but no one bothers
From Monolith to Megalomania
Now tourists flock from Transylvania
But faces carved with small explosions
Still must face the winds erosions
A million times the Moon will spin
and Six Grandfathers will return again
Joseph John Racano
We’re coming for you, Rushmore
To cast your dust on the desert floor
Our great-grandchildren made dirt poor
And even we don’t know what for
Take away your timelessness
Replace it with our crime business
Give disillusioned forefathers
a vista on our mindlessness
Mountain called Six Grandfathers
You cry for truth, but no one bothers
From Monolith to Megalomania
Now tourists flock from Transylvania
But faces carved with small explosions
Still must face the winds erosions
A million times the Moon will spin
and Six Grandfathers will return again
Joseph John Racano
Mess of Success
Another missile tested and they called it a success
For 40 Billion dollars in a big exploding mess
They did it for our safety; protected us from gloom
Nice to know that we can blow whole cities to their doom
Rising out of Vandenberg, a streaking yellow comet
Problematic policy’s no problem, we can bomb it
Another missile skyward, like a chariot of fire
I saw it level off before the boosters took it higher
Just a dummy warhead in a golden arc of flame
Whoever built it is the one that has to wear that name
As it broke the sky above a crowd of shrieking fools
I saw the 40 billion as a fleet of modern schools
where kids are taught survival in
the coming modern world
to live among the craters made
each time a flag unfurled
Joseph John Racano
The Garden
In the Garden of Eden where spirit does dwell
You see the great contrast ‘tweenst Heaven and Hell
Green is the Garden’s lush backdrop for bird song
Turn valley to alley and no bird will stay long
Rain on the Garden falls crystal and pure
In hell it brings acid the seas must endure
The beast in the garden eats some and feeds others
The feasting of nations consume their own mothers
On one side the meadow, soft breezes and plenty
While ghetto devours the meadow for money
It looks as if god left it squarely to thee-
Moonscape or ecstasy, what shall it be?
Joseph John Racano
In the Garden of Eden where spirit does dwell
You see the great contrast ‘tweenst Heaven and Hell
Green is the Garden’s lush backdrop for bird song
Turn valley to alley and no bird will stay long
Rain on the Garden falls crystal and pure
In hell it brings acid the seas must endure
The beast in the garden eats some and feeds others
The feasting of nations consume their own mothers
On one side the meadow, soft breezes and plenty
While ghetto devours the meadow for money
It looks as if god left it squarely to thee-
Moonscape or ecstasy, what shall it be?
Joseph John Racano
Legacy of Stone
Beyond our field of vision
Blue planets sway like grain
A trillion trillion stars like ours
All nursed on solar rain
Pity Albert Einstein
The number wasn't there
No matter how he counted
There were always stars to spare
The cosmos is a vacuum
Yet stars remain aflame
Illusory are eons that
the epochs put to shame
With this eternal backdrop
The legacy of man
Winds up as a plastic rock
that fits within your hand
Joseph John Racano
Beyond our field of vision
Blue planets sway like grain
A trillion trillion stars like ours
All nursed on solar rain
Pity Albert Einstein
The number wasn't there
No matter how he counted
There were always stars to spare
The cosmos is a vacuum
Yet stars remain aflame
Illusory are eons that
the epochs put to shame
With this eternal backdrop
The legacy of man
Winds up as a plastic rock
that fits within your hand
Joseph John Racano
Old King Coal
Old King Coal had a date with a troll
The troll was a lawyer with a cut like a bowl
The date was late and the air was foul
The backdrop wolves in a silhouette howl
He said to the lawyer, can you stop this train?
The sea level's risin' and there's acid rain
We're a family business in a world of pain
There's trouble in the wind and they're all insane
The lawyer said, Coal, let me make some calls
Try to put a turbine in Niagara Falls
But first you gotta sign on the dotted line
From this day forward all you make is mine
The lawyer called congress and the congress called oil
(A guy good at making legislation spoil)
"It worked for us- it'll work for you;
Nobody makes money if the smoke don't spew"
Oil called the senate and the senate shut down
A guy named Guido went to Washing-town
The secret service wouldn't let him sign the book
The White House didn't want to meet the crook
Now it's a matter for the folks at large
The Iceberg's are bigger than an oil barge
From the Eerie Canal to Muscle Shoals
It's time to take a hammer to the Old King's Coals
Joseph John Racano June 2nd 2014
Draco the Dragon
Draco was a dragon
imprisoned in the wood
Collected in my wagon
I brought him home for good
For months on end I coaxed him
to show himself to me
My trusty Lobo at my side
for each discovery
We lay him on a table
and dressed him with a care
Forced to introspection 'till
his dragon soul lay bare
When Draco was awakened
and Lobo satisfied
I released him like the kraken
and he took off for the sky
Joseph John Racano
5/18/14
Draco was a dragon
imprisoned in the wood
Collected in my wagon
I brought him home for good
For months on end I coaxed him
to show himself to me
My trusty Lobo at my side
for each discovery
We lay him on a table
and dressed him with a care
Forced to introspection 'till
his dragon soul lay bare
When Draco was awakened
and Lobo satisfied
I released him like the kraken
and he took off for the sky
Joseph John Racano
5/18/14
When Artists Collaborate
They came from above and they came from below
Showing us love and us loving the show
Their game is as old as antiquity though
They meet in the middle, and we never know
Take this, and take that! (the wheat field went splat)
Take that, and now this! (the whales did not miss)
Now circles and moons! (like golden cartoons)
And finally, a flair! (like laser-cut hair)
One comes for the planet, and one for the krill
(whenever they have a few light years to kill)
Last time around men had started to till
Now they've returned to a sea with no chill
Take this, and take that! (the wheat field went splat)
Take that, and now this! (the whales did not miss)
Now circles and moons! (like golden cartoons)
And finally, a flair! (like laser-cut hair)
People of Earth say the circles are bunk
And talk of a warming up climate is junk
But sea levels rise and their kids will be sunk
Let's just whale-crop art them out of their funk!
Take this, and take that! (the wheat field went splat)
Take that, and now this! (the whales did not miss)
Now circles and moons! (like golden cartoons)
And finally, a flair! (like laser-cut hair)
When it was done, and was seen from afar
it almost outshone the nearby yellow star
There's no better artists to heal up a scar
than whales and the extraterrestrials are!
Joseph John Racano
5/9/14
They came from above and they came from below
Showing us love and us loving the show
Their game is as old as antiquity though
They meet in the middle, and we never know
Take this, and take that! (the wheat field went splat)
Take that, and now this! (the whales did not miss)
Now circles and moons! (like golden cartoons)
And finally, a flair! (like laser-cut hair)
One comes for the planet, and one for the krill
(whenever they have a few light years to kill)
Last time around men had started to till
Now they've returned to a sea with no chill
Take this, and take that! (the wheat field went splat)
Take that, and now this! (the whales did not miss)
Now circles and moons! (like golden cartoons)
And finally, a flair! (like laser-cut hair)
People of Earth say the circles are bunk
And talk of a warming up climate is junk
But sea levels rise and their kids will be sunk
Let's just whale-crop art them out of their funk!
Take this, and take that! (the wheat field went splat)
Take that, and now this! (the whales did not miss)
Now circles and moons! (like golden cartoons)
And finally, a flair! (like laser-cut hair)
When it was done, and was seen from afar
it almost outshone the nearby yellow star
There's no better artists to heal up a scar
than whales and the extraterrestrials are!
Joseph John Racano
5/9/14
The Love in the World
Somewhere out on the deep blue sea
Where the fish have wings and they all live free
The Sun warms my back and suddenly
The love in the world just lifted me
Someplace off on a dune of sand
Where lizards live in a dry parched land
The cactus offers juice in a cool cupped hand
And the love in the world just lifted me
Six miles up on the edge of space
An astronaut gazes at a round blue place
Countless stars reflecting in the mask on his face
And the love in the world just lifted me
Whales sing songs to spin the galaxies 'round
Creator and creation both a-spiraling down
Welcomed into arms that make the Black Hole sound
And the love in the world just lifted me
Joseph John Racano
Somewhere out on the deep blue sea
Where the fish have wings and they all live free
The Sun warms my back and suddenly
The love in the world just lifted me
Someplace off on a dune of sand
Where lizards live in a dry parched land
The cactus offers juice in a cool cupped hand
And the love in the world just lifted me
Six miles up on the edge of space
An astronaut gazes at a round blue place
Countless stars reflecting in the mask on his face
And the love in the world just lifted me
Whales sing songs to spin the galaxies 'round
Creator and creation both a-spiraling down
Welcomed into arms that make the Black Hole sound
And the love in the world just lifted me
Joseph John Racano
...and the love in the world just lifted me
The Ongoing Masterpiece
When saving the world
a good place to start
is on a drop cloth unfurled
to save drops from your art
The drips may be green
and they may be bright yellow
Or perhaps you could mix them
and paint us a cello
Purples are fun
when you want to unwind
(You can't see much else if
you're color-blind)
So do keep it bright
and work in the light
Draw, paint and shape
'till your fancy takes flight
Dip in the pink,
dip in the blue
Violet is mystery
Indigo too
By stroke of a brush
or swipe of a cloth
ideas coalesce
like good soup into broth
And soon will appear
a new atmosphere
Art lovers will cheer
and the critics will jeer
By the time you have freed
the angel from marble
The critics suggestions
will fade into garble
All works accepted
for better or worse
in that ongoing masterpiece-
the Universe
Joseph John Racano
When saving the world
a good place to start
is on a drop cloth unfurled
to save drops from your art
The drips may be green
and they may be bright yellow
Or perhaps you could mix them
and paint us a cello
Purples are fun
when you want to unwind
(You can't see much else if
you're color-blind)
So do keep it bright
and work in the light
Draw, paint and shape
'till your fancy takes flight
Dip in the pink,
dip in the blue
Violet is mystery
Indigo too
By stroke of a brush
or swipe of a cloth
ideas coalesce
like good soup into broth
And soon will appear
a new atmosphere
Art lovers will cheer
and the critics will jeer
By the time you have freed
the angel from marble
The critics suggestions
will fade into garble
All works accepted
for better or worse
in that ongoing masterpiece-
the Universe
Joseph John Racano
When Kids just Went Sailing
The world is exploding, our systems eroding
The warning signs say that it's time to go boating
Follow the children and ask if it fits them
to allow us on board the new dawn they bring with them
And as we pass garbage, huge islands of plastic
we'll do transmutation, make something fantastic!
Put holes in a cocoanut, make it a whale call
Blow through it toward the horizon 'till nightfall
Awake in the morning surrounded by whales
Lifting their flukes to protect us from gales
Each smiling broadly, baleen ten feet wide
Making shrimp scampi from krill, side to side
After the storm, eyes made out the form
of millions of whales, could this be the new norm?
In whale pod formation, the largest cetacean
signaled with flukes to go back to our nation
With pinpoint precision, a pod of ten million
left the pavilion in a splash of vermillion
Set on a course headed for the horizon
right underneath where a blue moon was rising
The Humpbacks breached left and the Fin whales breached right
Gray whales were darker, Belugas were white
Orcas went down as the Blue Whales arose
I sat on the bow and they rubbed on my toes
They left us ashore on a still-rising island
I jumped off the arc and the lead whale was smiling
Knee deep in the surf, I admired the place
Mango trees, bumble bees, lots of great space
and so on and so on and so on it goes
the story of children with whale petting toes
who ended the old ways of sonar and whaling
ended forever when kids just went sailing!
Joseph John Racano
art: second graders of Atascadero and Jeff Wefferson
The world is exploding, our systems eroding
The warning signs say that it's time to go boating
Follow the children and ask if it fits them
to allow us on board the new dawn they bring with them
And as we pass garbage, huge islands of plastic
we'll do transmutation, make something fantastic!
Put holes in a cocoanut, make it a whale call
Blow through it toward the horizon 'till nightfall
Awake in the morning surrounded by whales
Lifting their flukes to protect us from gales
Each smiling broadly, baleen ten feet wide
Making shrimp scampi from krill, side to side
After the storm, eyes made out the form
of millions of whales, could this be the new norm?
In whale pod formation, the largest cetacean
signaled with flukes to go back to our nation
With pinpoint precision, a pod of ten million
left the pavilion in a splash of vermillion
Set on a course headed for the horizon
right underneath where a blue moon was rising
The Humpbacks breached left and the Fin whales breached right
Gray whales were darker, Belugas were white
Orcas went down as the Blue Whales arose
I sat on the bow and they rubbed on my toes
They left us ashore on a still-rising island
I jumped off the arc and the lead whale was smiling
Knee deep in the surf, I admired the place
Mango trees, bumble bees, lots of great space
and so on and so on and so on it goes
the story of children with whale petting toes
who ended the old ways of sonar and whaling
ended forever when kids just went sailing!
Joseph John Racano
art: second graders of Atascadero and Jeff Wefferson
Rhodie the Rooster
Rhodie the Rooster, a Rhode Island Red
I hear him at 4 when I’m sleeping in bed
He knows that his job is to bodyguard hens
and makes sure at night they’re all safe in their pens
He walks like a cowboy because of his spurs
Espolón del gallo, and what that infers
His tail feathers graceful, his comb is his crown
The hens like his waddle that’s drooping on down
Rhodie the gentleman scratches the ground
allowing his women to forage around
And none of their benefit’s greater than mine
The eggs are delicious, the French Toast, divine
Rhodie’s all business, he watches for hawks
When hens are undressing, he sits there and gawks
Redder than sunset, and proud as a peacock
He’s last into bed, and the door has to be locked
I never knew roosters could be so cool
Don’t mess with his girlfriends, he’s nobody’s fool
Up in the morning, and roosting at night
He likes to eat lizards, and can with one bite
Y’all come by and see him, he’s always around
Occasionally bathing with dirt on the ground
or preening his feathers, he likes them to shine
Just ask how he’s doing, he’ll tell you “Just fine.”
Joseph John Racano
Family of Earth
Woodpecker, Woodpecker, why do you knock
Do you call upon me, before acorn and flock
Only a Lizard drinks Sun from a rock
Woodpecker, Woodpecker, why do you knock
Stately old Oak, so great is your girth
gracing our land since the time of its birth
Only a Squirrel can know your true worth
Stately old Oak, so great is your girth
Boulder of granite, how broad is your chest
Of stones in the valley, I think thee the best
So hard to imagine the length of your quest
Boulder of granite, how broad is your chest
Douglas the Fir, so strong of the wood
As graceful a tree as has ever stood
Lofty reflection of all that is good
Douglas the Fir, so strong of the wood
Tumbling stream wearing bubbles of foam
You stay for the Spring and then leave us alone
I wonder how many reflections you've shown
Tumbling stream wearing bubbles of foam
Mountain of green, wearing mist as a veil
Are you mourning the loss of an Indian trail
Only a lizard lets go of his tail
Mountain of green wearing mist as a veil
Mighty Sequoia, magical tree
Taller, older and wiser than we
Showing us all of the things we can be
Mighty Sequoia, magical tree
Family of Earth, 'neath a canopy of stars
Spangled with Milky Way, Pluto and Mars
Love is eternal and fleeting the scars
Family of Earth, 'neath a canopy of stars
Joseph John Racano
A Pagan Poem
For some, today is holy
They just don't understand
that every day is worth a pray
as is each grain of sand
The whale, he is my brother
The sky, she is my wife
My Father Sun the only one
who's lighting up my life
The gifts we have are many
The days we get are few
Our oceans in the scheme of things
so many drops of dew
Our ways on Earth are broken
But we can make a change
Return the concrete pavement back
to forest field and range
We cannot go on living
like we're the only ones
So have a care because out there
are many other suns
Joseph John Racano
Dec 24, 2013
Words of Birds
The secret of the universe is in the song of birds
But only if you’re tuned to it, so listen to the words
A tweet for when the sun is out, tweet tweet for when it’s not
A cheep means that it’s chilly, and a caw says that it’s hot
‘Scree’ says screaming Eagle when he’s really having fun
Whistle says an Osprey when he’s found a Salmon run
Peep peep means a chickadee is just too tired to think
Adding ‘chit’ means anything except the kitchen sink
So when you’re out there wandering, listen for the pondering
of contemplative, meditative, indigenous and those non-native
birds of a feather, speaking together, some perhaps forecasting weather
Predicting tides, giving Condor rides, wings beating Morse code at their sides
Learn the language of a Boobie, he’s no Loon, his throat is ruby
Understand them, helping hand them, don’t let people go and ‘man’ them
Talk with birds, learn their words, it’s not so hard when done in thirds
Join the conversation, the Earth-wide celebration, come and be a part of the avian nation
You’ll know it when you’re done
all will speak as one
talking with a chatter in the noonday sun!
Joseph John Racano
The secret of the universe is in the song of birds
But only if you’re tuned to it, so listen to the words
A tweet for when the sun is out, tweet tweet for when it’s not
A cheep means that it’s chilly, and a caw says that it’s hot
‘Scree’ says screaming Eagle when he’s really having fun
Whistle says an Osprey when he’s found a Salmon run
Peep peep means a chickadee is just too tired to think
Adding ‘chit’ means anything except the kitchen sink
So when you’re out there wandering, listen for the pondering
of contemplative, meditative, indigenous and those non-native
birds of a feather, speaking together, some perhaps forecasting weather
Predicting tides, giving Condor rides, wings beating Morse code at their sides
Learn the language of a Boobie, he’s no Loon, his throat is ruby
Understand them, helping hand them, don’t let people go and ‘man’ them
Talk with birds, learn their words, it’s not so hard when done in thirds
Join the conversation, the Earth-wide celebration, come and be a part of the avian nation
You’ll know it when you’re done
all will speak as one
talking with a chatter in the noonday sun!
Joseph John Racano
A Hunger
With pearl-handled pistols strapped to our hips
Our history reads like the Bloods and the Crips
Where ever we go salty tears and blood drips
Nowadays, with a smile, three piece suit and wing tips
Given the Sun, the Moon and the seas
and a bottomless hunger that nothing could please
The mist covered meadow, the birds and the trees
Somehow they weren’t enough to appease
Down, we brought mountains of purple with rain
strip mined their guts with a shovel and crane
Worshiped the gold, sent the goods down the drain
Later to find we had mined only pain
Gifted the plains and enough room to breathe
We squandered the Bison, and Indians grieved
A million square miles of death and disease
More death for nothing than one could conceive
We took to the sea in our tall wooden ships
Steered by the stars many nights, many trips
Hunted the whales with our sharp harpoon tips
And went down at sea, with a curse on our lips
We knew the black Dolphin, white mark at his brow
Snatched from the sea, in a pool is he now
Angry Poseidon, he furrows his brow
And we still chase the sparkly,
Live life only partly,
See through a glass, darkly,
We still chase the sparkly
as our sacred cow
Joseph John Racano
Great White Elephant in the Room
The Great White Elephant in the room
Invisible cause of the planets doom
Giant something we can't see
It's in the contract, on page three
We'll find bears and we'll find snow
Watch the Borealis show
But when it comes to our god, oil
we can only test the soil
Search Antarctica for the cause
Could Earth be going through menapause?
Why the melting, drowning bears?
Hush your mouth, they're right downstairs!
They might hear you postulating
that big oil needs regulating
That would only mean it's true
Now fire that guy, get someone new!
Someone who won't see the gloom
of the Great White Elephant in the room
Joseph John Racano
Pack Life
My hide is cured and my pants are torn
I’ve run with a pack since I was born
When I spoke with my father (mostly a fluke)
He told me I was raised by a Dane named 'Duke'
When adults sent my dogs away
I cried the nights, called their names all day
I bond like a canine and remember to this day
Butch, LU-LU and 'The Following Dog', a Brooklyn stray
When my fangs grew long and my muscles grew strong,
I assembled a mighty pack of my own
Misty stripped the meat from every bone
And her gallant mate Sam, noblest dog who ever swam
And when the years wore them out, I gave their bodies to the River
The tide took them out
Then it was mighty Champion and Tree with graying me
After 16 years, I buried them beneath a tree
Now it's Trinka and Lobo and dad's no longer a hobo
Perhaps we'll all meet again some night beneath the moon
Throw our heads back and cry out our tune
A song of solidarity, and family and love
With a growl, a snarl and bare our fangs at the moon above
And we hope you will answer
We'll be listening across the valley for your answer...
Joseph John Racano
photo: Tree and Trinka at Grand Canyon
The Story of Macho B
Monarch Macho, how you danced in your death
with a tranquilizer dart that stole your last breath
Your spotted rosettes spelled out your doom
at the hands of a species who know only gloom
Your return home from exile came a moment too soon
as white men in crisp suits turned the Earth to the Moon
Are cattlemen proud of the way you were cowed?
Your might and your majesty weren't allowed
Killed in short order for crossing a border
we use to divide between slaughterers and slaughtered
Fantastic black cuniform on yellow velvet uniform,
An ancient bold manuscript now on a lifeless form
It reads like the story of a poor hounded unicorn
extinguished by men for the value of its twisted horn
Yet the world and its gold are left poorer by far
now that Macho B no longer hunts by a star
There's just not enough room on a planet this size
for a king and the serfs who brought on his demise
With the voice of a saw and a huge shredding paw
who lays down the jungles primordial law
Macho B; Fly and be free
Happy hunting and blessed be
May the Gryphon forgive those with no eyes to see
the glorious creature that was Macho B
Joseph John Racano
December Sky
Beneath a warm December Sky
We loved each other by and by
A day when pit bulls wagged their tails
and no one stepped on any snails
Brother Michael waved his staff
His kindness made the weeping laugh
Bright Carnations ruled the day
then floated off into the bay
Morro Rock and you and I
beneath a warm December Sky
Joseph John Racano
Last Voyage of the USS Guardian
The Exxon Valdez and Bligh Reef got frisky
when old Captain Hazelwood sipped on his whiskey
And one legged Ahab lost the good Pequod
when he crewed a voyage using his ‘B’ squad
As Nemo sipped brandy he kept on board Nautiless
the ocean got randy and nautiless caught in this
But when Rice ran the Guardian onto his reef
He had just left the Philippines, who grow the best spleef
Now the reefs cut to ribbons, and the ship will be soon
Let’s just call it karma- here comes a typhoon!
Joseph John Racano
An Activist and his Dog
This is an activist
and this is his dog
to them all that matters is
the health of a frog
You mess with our planet
you're messing with us
You'll shortly look like you
got hit by a bus
Or maybe, come join us
stop actin' a fool
Forget about all that frontin'
they taught to you in school
You don't own the planet
The planet it owns you
Now let's rock the Kasbah
You know, like we do!
Joseph John Racano
photo: Racano (of Lobo)
Planet Blue
Once upon a planet blue
lived a race of giants who
swam and spoke across whole seas
Had hearts like cars and fins like trees
They sang the world their special songs
spouted wisdom that still belongs
Instilling wonder in our young-
(no elephant outweighed their tongue!)
But on that planet, unlike here
none stood by them, stiff from fear
Alas, the love they gave on Planet Blue
was small, compared to what we do
And when the last blue, streamlined ghost
vanished off that planet's coast
'twas man himself, who lost the most
No longer could he point and boast
But we, on lovely Planet Earth
aqua-garden of our birth
Will not give up so easily
We simply can't, and still be free
Joseph John Racano
pictured: Ms Blue and Gershon Cohen
Modern Warrior
Modern Warrior, the world around has changed
But inside you the old breed's blood is still flowing through your veins
Invaders tried to push you from the home land of your birth
But tenacious like the lichens, your grip tightens on the Earth
Still you live as poetry, at one with all of life
Within your heart, you carry the spark of flint struck with a knife
In your dreams the Appaloosa still splashes through clear streams
And spoken words are more than verbs, they’re what one truly means
Take heart Modern warrior, and bravely stay the course
The bricks will fall, the cars will stall, but not the painted horse
When the land returns to silence, the birds won’t have to shout
and we can drink the rain that brings the Monkey Flowers out
Joseph John Racano
This Cathedral Earth
Where drains become streams, there is a place
Where brick yields to stone, a glorious place
Orchard of fruit, manicured and sterile
gives way to tall brute, wild and virile
Where Feral cast shadows on leggedy prey
and each pearly Moonrise begins a new day
See there! At the edge- a weed covered sign?
It says, 'the 'next world's been delayed for all
time'
And there is such a place of timeless ceremony, and
boundless mirth!
Come visit this kingdom-
this Cathedral, Earth
Joseph John Racano
The Rain
This evening the rain found a way to my door
Bathed in its riches I was no longer poor
Like dandelion seeds splashing my eye
a thousand clear drops floated down from the sky
The wet paratroopers did peacefully land
ever so gently in the palm of my hand
The drops turned to puddles, the puddles to streams
The streams to a river that burst at its seams
The banks overflowing, the dams overwhelmed
I jumped on a riverboat, the first one I'd helmed
"Aye" asked the matey, "which way shall we turn?"
I said, "Any way but over, this is no time to learn
With a houseboat to starboard and a huge log to port
and navigational hazards too numerous to report
A marlinspike seaman in a turtle neck sweater
held up a sextant and said "The storm's getting better"
The ships cook, O’malley, brought java from the galley
and we landed between tenth street pier and the alley
The rain had stopped falling, the new moon was dark
I ordered the skeleton crew “Disembark!”
I paid for a rickshaw with a fine work of scrimshaw
and was back in my bed by the morning’s first crow caw
I never explained it and I won’t even try
Suffice it to say I’m just glad that it’s dry
Joseph John Racano
My Secret Fort
Here I sit in my Secret Fort
Trees to starboard, grass to port
A speckled sun comes shining through
a roof of leaves moist with dew
From outside it's just a bush
But give the secret door a push
Inside, you'll find waiting there
a secret table and secret chair
A place to sit and watch the birds
or search my mind for secret words
and gaze out over secret pond
to snow capped mountains far beyond
Read the paper, drink a cup
go and fill my senses up
Just make sure when all is done
my Secret Fort stays known to one!
Joseph John Racano
dedicated to my secret fort at Big Shell
House of Balance
Welcome to the house of balance
Cosmological its talents
Shoo the darkness out the door
Through the front inviting more
Lining up the solar stones
Resurrecting past light cones
Thumbnail Moon lain on its back
End the cycle fade to black
Pluck the suns out from the sky
Wash the starlight, hang to dry
When alignment comes in view
Cast them out to shine anew
House of Balance, Cosminox
All the cosmos in a box
Come and sit on our front porch
Watch the passing of the torch
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/08/08/2020
Lost Woods 'neath Cardigan Bay
Folklore tells a land once lay
Beneath the Dolphins of Cardigan Bay
Deep below their playful pod
Are the long lost woods of Cantre'r Gwaelod
Where bronze age antlers whisper tales
Of epic battles among bull males
And oaken salted tree ringed wood
Once forged arrows true and good
One hundred thousand years ago
And then again a quarter or so
Woolly Mammoth scratched his flank
Twenty miles West of the present-day bank
Telltale footprints, ancient clay
Revealed at low tide in the bay
Coincide with tales of yore
Modern science yields yet more
Horses rid by warriors bold
Young bones felled atop the old
Kept preserved for all to see
Who peer back through antiquity
Violent storm come move the sand
Walk us through a bygone land
Land no longer land at all
Until the next age comes to call
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/05/22/2020
Persimmon Street
In the days before Christmas and after thanks given
Solsticial snows overwhelm the persimmon
A blanket of purity spread at our feet
Leaping white fox dances ballet to eat
Having such powder to offer a sheath
Makes lucky the jackrabbit hiding beneath
Not so the mouse who was caught with a squeak
This business of winter is not for the meek
Late in the morning the solsticial sun
Moistens the snowballs providing good fun
For snowmen and snow forts and riding on sleds
Too long sequestered in musty old sheds
Then at the the end of the solsticial day
Doe and her fawns get to come out and play
And children walk home frozen fingers and feet
As darkness and snow fall on Persimmon Street
Joseph John Racano
Red Sky at Morning
Red Sky at Morning, Sailor take warning
Batten the hatches we sail by the dawning
Lash the old boatswain’s mate fast to the helm
Polish with oil both the teak and the elm
Cast off the mooring or lines will be parted
Blow your last kisses to those broken hearted
Run up the sails and hold steady the rudder
Cook to the galley where stow ye fresh butter
Red sky at night is a sailors delight
But red at the morn means there’s sails to be torn
First mate’s a scallywag, went and got scurvy
Spent his doubloons on a lass drunk and curvy
Master at arms to the lookout at crow’s nest
Load all the canons prepare for the blow fest
Get the supplies and fresh water below decks
Scribble a will just in case we be ship wrecks
Joseph John Racano
photo: John B. Spohrer jr
Dirty White Truck
Well I have to go to work now
Why cuz I'm a jerk now
When it snows I'll attach a snow plow to my
Dirty White Truck, dirty white work truck
Never stop for breakfast
May not stop for lunch
Never clean my boots off and the
Rug it has a crunch inside my
Dirty White Truck, dirty white work truck
Things aint never been the same
Since I broke up with Madelaine
She left me standin' in the rain
Now I just work to ease the pain in my
Dirty White Truck, dirty white work truck
Dirty White Truck, dirty white work truck
9 pm and work is through
Tell you what I'm gonna do
Hit the bar scene with the flu
Hunt some doves, drink mountain dew
Ask the gal with the big buck teeth
What she's wearin' underneath
There's still lots of corn to shuck and we can
Get greasy workin' on my...
Dirty White Truck, dirty white work truck
Dirty White Truck, dirty white work truck
Joseph John Racano
Observing Winter Solstice
Watch the sky for lurking Dragons
Unload goods from viking wagons
Light the arrows, loose the arc
Port canoe of White Birch bark
Form a circle, food and friends
Contemplate what never ends
Blessed be the Moon and stars
Pagan reverence Sun and Mars
Sacrifice to fierce Arachne
Lest in battle she attack thee
One less now among our number
To the Gods and off to slumber
Stein of mead and wing of chicken
On your knees ye thankful wiccan
Drink and feast this shortest day
While viking fleet sleeps in the cay
Joseph John Racano
12/21/18
Caramel Condor
Caramel Condor
melting in the breeze
Dripping on the countryside
Many for-to-please
Observation telescope
tilted toward the sky
Showing the Kaleidoscope
residing in your eye
Ride through clouds
that they may savor
wings with two-tone
candy flavor
Flip your feathers
toward the ground
Let them float you
gently down
Use the sunlight
shining through
to dry your wings
of morning dew
Incandescent
wing chatoyancy
Let the thermals
give you buoyancy
Hover over
vermillion heights
Favorite spot to
spend cold nights
Cleared to land
on cliff-face rocks
Retire to your
Candy box
Joseph John Racano
Flowers of a New Land
Saharan Mustard yellow
Blooming hither and yon
Waving fields of the fellow
Going on and on
Their Mustard faces smile
Amiably at the Sun
With feet rooted firmly
And no impulse to run
The wind passes o'er
his waving contingent
with a mellow, shoosh-ing sound
Non-native and indigent
He always calms me down
Each tiny pastel flower
a star much like the sun
Yellowish in color
resplendent and fun
A new world is becoming
The past has come and gone
Some among us understand
We too are invaders
in a new and foreign land
Joseph John Racano
Thank you for Flying FLYBMI
All passengers please, your attention
The Captain has lit the seat belt light
All trays in the upright position
We hope you've enjoyed your flight
The local time is 2 PM
The temperature 0 and sunny
Thank you for flying on FlyBMI
But the airline just said something funny
Please depart safely using the nearest exit
There will be no more connecting flights
The airline is bankrupt due mainly to BREXIT
WE hope this won’t cause any fights
All flights have been cancelled including New Zealand
Please take a complimentary six pack of beer
We’re so, oh so sorry if we’ve hurt your feelings
Welcome to Siberia, we’re leaving you here!
Joseph John Racano
Ruler of the Night Sun
Black as the sky at midnight
Yellow as sun at the dawn
Sabre teeth whiter than ivory
Mesoamerican spawn
Voice like a chainsaw
Built to attack
Writing like cuneiform
Script on your back
Pleistocene Dancers
Hated by ranchers
Worshiped by Mayans
Brother to Lions
Arizona’s native sons
Stradling ridge lines
Hiding from guns
American Tiger
Original sage
Held in a cage
Pent up with rage
King of the kings
Lord of the rings
Human malignancy
Stripped you of dignity
Open the cages
Release the fur sages
Return to the land
It’s ruler of ages
Joseph John Racano
Disciples of the Super Worm Moon
(rise of the worms)
Deep within Tierra’s breast
Awake from slumber, leave the nest
Frost relents and the world may breathe
Moon calls for you to unsheathe
Earth and Moon in conversation
Rise and shine ye Earthworm nation
Stretch your segments kink your coils
Aerate the sacred soils
On the vernal intersection
Under equinox protection
Tumbling by through space and time
Living planet in her prime
Spring has sprung, songs are sung
Catch a raindrop on your tongue
Until the solstice comes in June
We remain disciples of the Super Worm Moon
Joseph John Racano
The Wisdom Tree
The sky was turning gray
The path was growing long
Birds up in the canopy
Sang all their lovely songs
From everywhere around us
Came the sound of rushing water
I was the forest's son and she
My girl the forest's daughter
We crossed a wooden bridge
And beheld the sacred site
Our ancient hidden Monastery
Shelter for the night
Greeted at the archway
By gentle folk in robes
Waning sunlight shining through
The sempervirens boughs
They led us into such a place
As few had ever seen
A window on the forest world
Of giants tall and green
I rudely snapped a picture
When I might have turned away
But what I captured lifted me
Sustains me to this day
Truly blessed we lay to rest
Awoke in early morn
We left with jars of honey
Oh so thankful we were born
So if you trek to Humboldt town
Be sure to seek the Redwood crown
It’s always there for you to see
Up high atop the Wisdom Tree
Joseph John Racano
Dino Fish
Hypostomus Plecostumas, Catfish of armor
So still in your tank I thought you a goner
Named for your mouth underneath which is pleated
Tank shiny clean all the algae defeated
Somebody loves you, you're healthy and vibrant
In from the Pleistocene, ice age sea migrant
Colored in cammo so much like a dinosaur
Really felt bad for you seeing you in the store
Knew at first glance that we should be together
Brought you back home for to love you forever
Glued to the glass, sudden and fast
Hypo-Plecostumas you’re mine at last
What a surprise- look at those eyes-
Maybe the creature Loch Ness in disguise
And hope you don’t mind- I love your design
Reminds me of a paisley neck tie that was mine
Flipper and fin like your Cambrian kin
Surely that’s too small a tank to be in
And why a tank at all- with no waterfall
You might like the water park back of the mall
So by-the-by my Plecostumas friend
Our little ditty and friendship must end
But always remember keep everything clean
Prettiest dino-fish I’ve ever seen
Joseph John Racano
Hypostomus Plecostumas, Catfish of armor
So still in your tank I thought you a goner
Named for your mouth underneath which is pleated
Tank shiny clean all the algae defeated
Somebody loves you, you're healthy and vibrant
In from the Pleistocene, ice age sea migrant
Colored in cammo so much like a dinosaur
Really felt bad for you seeing you in the store
Knew at first glance that we should be together
Brought you back home for to love you forever
Glued to the glass, sudden and fast
Hypo-Plecostumas you’re mine at last
What a surprise- look at those eyes-
Maybe the creature Loch Ness in disguise
And hope you don’t mind- I love your design
Reminds me of a paisley neck tie that was mine
Flipper and fin like your Cambrian kin
Surely that’s too small a tank to be in
And why a tank at all- with no waterfall
You might like the water park back of the mall
So by-the-by my Plecostumas friend
Our little ditty and friendship must end
But always remember keep everything clean
Prettiest dino-fish I’ve ever seen
Joseph John Racano
Welcome to Pyrexia
Across the River Corning
Activities began mid-morning
A lefty with dyslexia
Introduced me to Pyrexia
The glassy stuff makes cooking fun
I scoured garage sales one by one
Tossed the ones with chips
Dropped the best one, smashed to bits
Great to use for Pot luck parties
Stowing beans for late-nite farties
Garden salad mixing bowl
Arrest estate sale, lost control
Upon release returned to Pyrex
Filled a festive bowl with Rice Chex
With bowls-a-plenty crossed that bridge
Pyrex fresh food in the fridge
Joseph John Racano
Across the River Corning
Activities began mid-morning
A lefty with dyslexia
Introduced me to Pyrexia
The glassy stuff makes cooking fun
I scoured garage sales one by one
Tossed the ones with chips
Dropped the best one, smashed to bits
Great to use for Pot luck parties
Stowing beans for late-nite farties
Garden salad mixing bowl
Arrest estate sale, lost control
Upon release returned to Pyrex
Filled a festive bowl with Rice Chex
With bowls-a-plenty crossed that bridge
Pyrex fresh food in the fridge
Joseph John Racano
Dancing Tree Fungus
A little less sun makes it fun for the fungus
And who hasn’t been sunburned, not one here among us
Colorful pinwheels likened to lichen
Mexican skirts with a dancers excitement
Whirling fiesta of fungal-fed culture
Arisen midst desert and cactus and vulture
Fungus and algae in symbiotic dance
Rainbow of rhizines; a hypnotic trance
Nothing to lose and nothing is lost
Nothing compares to a cool bed of moss
Bright spinning lichen lay down in la cuesta
Afternoon heat is the time for siesta
Tree ring umbrellas encircle the trunk
Nature’s protection for neighborhood skunk
Gathering place of the vole and the shrew
For drinking the drip irrigation of dew
Joseph John Racano
Every Day is Earth Day in Cuiping Village
T’was a foggy early morning over Cuiping Village
Tall and happy trees embraced the bright green hillage
The land was soft and verdant, the houses fit right in
One extended family where both fawn and folks are kin
I stretched my arms and howled a yawn
Pleasant fragrance rode the dawn
Far away I heard the horn
Time to harvest barley-corn
Wicker trailer filled by noon
Hitched it to the old raccoon
I wondered why he wore a mask
But knew it would be rude to ask
Off we went across the valley
Paid full price for the barley-corn tally
Stopped to play on the way back home
Groomed raccoon with a good long comb
High above the clouds were puffy
Most were shapeless, one was a puppy
It started to rain so he turned into a guppy
I caught what I needed in a little sippy-cuppy
The storm passed on and the clouds were gone
I loosed the raccoon at the edge of a pond
Where I caught a fish and I gave it a wish
So he wished himself up off my dish
By that time it was afternoon
And the sun switched places with a rising moon
Which I saw up close as I crossed the hillage
Such was life at Cuiping Village
Cuiping Village, Cuiping Village
We don’t use oil so we don’t have spillage
There are plants and trees and all stomachs get fillage
But time stands still here at Cuiping Village
Sometimes when I see a plane
From 35,000 feet I can feel their pain
They land somewhere then return again
And it doesn’t seem to matter to them where or when
Cuiping Village where the birds still sing
Cuiping Village where we still have spring
It feels like your birthday in Cuiping Village
Because every day is Earth Day in Cuiping Village
Joseph John Racano
Scuttle the Ark
The time had come to disembark
Creatures gathered ‘round the Ark
Cranes craned their necks, Giraffes paid respects
Jesus stood somewhat perplexed
For every deck and every shelf
Man had taken for himself
And high above the rising sea
Loomed every kind of industry
The hull was stained with leaking oil
Monsoons made the oceans boil
Holding tight to soggy pillow
Children watched the smokestacks billow
Mice were floating, clouds exploding
Squirrels took up horseback boating
Sky was bloating, quite foreboding
Hope was nil yet still eroding
Only elders remembered
the world we dismembered
When parkways drove parks away
and driveways drove life away
Will nature forgive us? Children mis-give us?
Good time to open that bottle of Chivas
Creatures on rafts, big oil on crafts
British Petroleum burns Gulf and then laughs
We say Bon Voyage, Albatross arbitrage
How will we save all the creatures at large?
Two grains of salt mixed with one bitter pill
How much of nature do we want to kill?
Money is free speech and we have free will
Nature now chooses how much it will swill
The rains getting harder the sky growing dark
Don’t let her sail; someone scuttle the Ark!
Joseph John Racano
Art by: Russell Hodin
Indian Sky
I saw the forest for the trees
And happy stripes on the honeybees
Who among us could be poor
With all this magic at the door
Father time knits Indian skies
Mountains crumble new ones rise
Wearing caps of pure white snow
From the Earth they come, to the Earth they’ll go
Earth and water, rock and sky
Wind our breath the rain our cry
Waters sparkle like a gem
Fossils ask that we remember them
Thunder booms from rolling clouds
Lightning forks beneath their shrouds
We share these riches until we die
Let all give thanks to the Indian Sky
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/7/31/21
Art: Spiraloso at Deviant Art
Go Little Richard
Go Little Richard you were the king
Of rock and roll boogie and man could you sing
And perhaps yes the queen no need to hide it
Your records came out and we ran out and buyed it
Swift agile fingers that danced on the keys
Singing the gospel as well as you pleased
I still remember as a young rock and roller
Your 45 records playing on my victrolla
No note too high for your beautiful voice
Always in tune with your blues notes of choice
Dressed like a princess a 1950's Diana
Jam like the wind on your Steinway pi-ana
You gave us good boogie and wrapped it in blue
Elvis and Jerry Lee learned it from you
A whole generation will mourn that you're gone
But along with Rock music- your legend lives on
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/05/09/2020
I Saved Batman
Rolling by a place where the community
Places used stuff for a second opportunity
I slowed to a crawl as I scrutinized it all
And that was when I saw him ‘tweenst a blankie and a ball
I don’t know how he got there, sitting on the rocks
Countenance unyielding, a hero in a box
I knew he was in trouble, I’ve seen enough of that man
I pulled him from the rubble thinking, I am saving Batman!
Somewhat he the worse for wear, I spirited him out of there
So this is where good heroes go when no one loves them anymo’
Shortly he and we were goner, placed him on a seat of honor
Bat signal shone high and far, we sped off in electric car
Logo dirty head was bobbin’ nowhere any sign of Robyn
Never thought I’d see him homeless slumping over seeming boneless
‘Robyn’s fried, Alfred died; guess I’m all beat up inside’
I straightened out his mask and cape and whisked my hero toward escape
‘Batman Batman tell me true, how’d you come to be so blue?
You’re an idol, you are loved, many villians you have shoved
Penguin, Riddler, Mr. Freeze, took them on and beat all these
Surely you can come back strong’, then we sang the Batman song
Na-na na na na na na nah Batman!! Batman!! Batman!!
Na – na na na na na na nan at- BATMAN!!!
Then we saw it on the cloud, cool bat signal, drew a crowd
He jumped out, looked back, ‘Thanks, Man.’
That’s how yeah, I saved Batman.
©@JosephJohnRacano/04/28/2020
Rolling by a place where the community
Places used stuff for a second opportunity
I slowed to a crawl as I scrutinized it all
And that was when I saw him ‘tweenst a blankie and a ball
I don’t know how he got there, sitting on the rocks
Countenance unyielding, a hero in a box
I knew he was in trouble, I’ve seen enough of that man
I pulled him from the rubble thinking, I am saving Batman!
Somewhat he the worse for wear, I spirited him out of there
So this is where good heroes go when no one loves them anymo’
Shortly he and we were goner, placed him on a seat of honor
Bat signal shone high and far, we sped off in electric car
Logo dirty head was bobbin’ nowhere any sign of Robyn
Never thought I’d see him homeless slumping over seeming boneless
‘Robyn’s fried, Alfred died; guess I’m all beat up inside’
I straightened out his mask and cape and whisked my hero toward escape
‘Batman Batman tell me true, how’d you come to be so blue?
You’re an idol, you are loved, many villians you have shoved
Penguin, Riddler, Mr. Freeze, took them on and beat all these
Surely you can come back strong’, then we sang the Batman song
Na-na na na na na na nah Batman!! Batman!! Batman!!
Na – na na na na na na nan at- BATMAN!!!
Then we saw it on the cloud, cool bat signal, drew a crowd
He jumped out, looked back, ‘Thanks, Man.’
That’s how yeah, I saved Batman.
©@JosephJohnRacano/04/28/2020
Tulips in the Rain
The meek shall inherit the Earth it is written
Saber-tooth Tiger will yield to the kitten
But what will be used as a vessel of wrath
By Gods who are angry we strayed from the path
Wholesale irreverence discord and turmoils
Lack of benevolence leaders like gargoyles
What could be harder than such on the eyes
A Garden of Eden turned garden of cries
Yet lack of humility, hate and pollution
May have a one-size that fits all solution
And as it was written so did it unfold
The forces of Heaven turned failure to gold
Down from on high swooping over the masses
The teeming unkempt techno-seeded with grasses
And where had stood crowds self-inflicted with pain
Now there were tulips awash in the rain
Joseph John Racano
*Another installment from the 2020 'Pandemic Poetry' Series by J.J.Racano
All rights reserved
©@JosephJohnRacano/3/12/2020
Stone Fountain
Timeless communion
Everlasting union
Cold stone winters bone
‘Till death our reunion
Casting our gaze over
Mountain expanses
God’s invitation to
Heavenly dances
Farewell to the Mrs. and
Rose petal kisses
Long years and counting
A reckoning this is
Perch of the Eagle
Temperance fountain
Abbey and Abbot on
Han Shan’s Cold Mountain
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/02/22/2020
Purple
Somebody told me you can’t rhyme with purple
In my opinion that’s just being hurtful
Their cup half-empty and mine is a third full
Statements like that make my poetry wordful
Some want to tell you the world isn’t saveable
Don’t even try because we aren’t capable
I tell those people go speak for yourself
Find dusty heart where ‘twas left on a shelf
You say goodnight and I answer good morning
Dawn is come red so good sailor take warning
New moon is black and the old moon is full
What in Sam Houston are you trying to pull
My coffee is black and I like my tea herbal
Pour it in slowly and stop at a third full
Maybe you didn’t intend to be hurtful
But know hereto-fore that I can rhyme with purple
Joseph John Racano
Neon Christmas Cactus Tree
The desert came alive as the sun went down
Everyone arrived and they gathered ‘round
And what a lovely sight on this night to see
A festival of light upon the Cactus Tree
Chuckwalla wore a Santa Claus collar
Bought at the dollar store for only a dollar
Also in the circle was a family of Horn Toads
Celebrating Christmas far away from the roads
Gila Monsters spent the night behaving themselves
Sticking to a contract they had signed with Elves
Also beneficial in the evening hour
Was the softness of the light upon the cactus flower
Soon the desert denizens had finished arriving
The sky was black velvet where the stars were thriving
Every creature holding hands in harmony
Gathered ‘round the neon Christmas Cactus Tree
Joseph John Racano
A Heart Felt Thanks
Today is the day for giving good thanks
To people whose spirits once dwelled on the banks
Of cold crystal rivers and clear running streams
On tall spotted horses who visit my dreams
Thanks to a people who never told lies
Spoke truth from a distance with smoke in the skies
They gave equal reverence to rabbit and bear
And honored the Earth and the trees and the air
A day to say thank you to first nation friends
And offer a humble attempt at amends
For borrowing lands that are soft on our feet
In their destruction lies our defeat
The ways of the white man can never last long
And someday the bluebird will resume his song
So until the Grizzly Bear retakes the meadow
Thanks for the land I turned into a ghetto
Joseph John Racano, Thanksgiving Day 2019
Retro-ressurection
For your perusal, for your inspection
Let’s take a moment’s introspection
Happy coincidence computer connection
Let’s call it ‘retro-ressurection’
Year of our lord 1973
Computers were new to you and to me
For twenty-five minutes all I could see
Was the symbol of an hourglass tumbling free
Losing my patience I had to do somethin’
I pointed a finger and pressed the wrong button
And so I went back had to do it again
Learned that computers just weren’t my friend
Time warp computers took all of my time
I read about politics read about crime
Got into yahoo and started a group
Wound up inside of a digital loop
Then it was something they liked to call MYSPACE
Many years later they’re still showing my face
That was when Facebook finally came out
And told the whole world what each other was about
That brings us up to retro-ressurection
People die leaving their online reflection
Cannot erase it cannot delete it
Dammit the internet can’t be defeated
Dead for 5 years Facebook sends out a memory
Here in my face is my dead ex friend Emery
Like it or not you’ll be part of the future
Can never dissever the digital suture
Think of old friends you had Tom Dick and Harry
Remember the girl that you wanted to marry
Try to forget them and bury the past
But it ain’t gonna happen, the dye has been cast
Joseph John Racano
For your perusal, for your inspection
Let’s take a moment’s introspection
Happy coincidence computer connection
Let’s call it ‘retro-ressurection’
Year of our lord 1973
Computers were new to you and to me
For twenty-five minutes all I could see
Was the symbol of an hourglass tumbling free
Losing my patience I had to do somethin’
I pointed a finger and pressed the wrong button
And so I went back had to do it again
Learned that computers just weren’t my friend
Time warp computers took all of my time
I read about politics read about crime
Got into yahoo and started a group
Wound up inside of a digital loop
Then it was something they liked to call MYSPACE
Many years later they’re still showing my face
That was when Facebook finally came out
And told the whole world what each other was about
That brings us up to retro-ressurection
People die leaving their online reflection
Cannot erase it cannot delete it
Dammit the internet can’t be defeated
Dead for 5 years Facebook sends out a memory
Here in my face is my dead ex friend Emery
Like it or not you’ll be part of the future
Can never dissever the digital suture
Think of old friends you had Tom Dick and Harry
Remember the girl that you wanted to marry
Try to forget them and bury the past
But it ain’t gonna happen, the dye has been cast
Joseph John Racano
National Popcorn Day
It’s National Popcorn Day
What more do you want me to say
It smells really cool
I’m a corn-popping fool
On this hip-hoppin’ corn-poppin’ day
What a great day for the lovers of popcorn
This is a message to those who are forlorn
Heat up the kettle, there’s no quicker way
To chase your forlornness away
Now is the time when the kernels start poppin’
If you’re passing on by won’t you stop by and drop in
It’s salted and buttered and freshly cow uddered
With napkins if fingers are soppin’
Don’t fret if you can’t eat it all
We can leave a few bags at the mall
To drop some is moot, the stuff doesn’t pollute
nd will vanish when crows come to call (caw! Caw!)
Joseph John Racano
Trouble with Travel
Got a lot on my plate
A Hawaiian vacation
Going bananas
Left suitcase at station
Slept on the beach
Brought shovel and pail
Woke by police
Now I’m sleeping in jail
Left the next morning
Went to Tahiti
Next off to Naples
And mamas baked ziti
Joining the jet set
Filled out application
Stuck at the airport
Left passport at station
So many problems
Arise to unravel
Discovering all of
The trouble with travel
Long lines, foreign signs
Weird food, grouchy mood
Jet lag, clothes wrinkle
Too many bags, nowhere to tinkle
All alone, long flight home
Out of money, lost my phone
On approach, holding pattern
UFO was only Saturn
JFK, finally landed
TSA, 8 hours stranded
Ditched the gels, ditched the spray
Forgot the pot, was led away
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/03/27/2020
art: Racano
Dark Night
Welcome to the real dark night
Where flying fowl eschew the light
And stars cascade their modest glow
On kings and paupers far below
Please accept our invitation
Bathe yourself in incantation
Let your eyes adjust to dark
Fear thee not the howl nor bark
Be not restless be not tense
There is no need for aprehence
Wear the darkness like a shroud
As the Batman tall and proud
Do not cower nor give cry
When sharp lightning splits the sky
As the dark befriends the fawn
Be thee gone by light of dawn
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/11/25/2021
Welcome to the real dark night
Where flying fowl eschew the light
And stars cascade their modest glow
On kings and paupers far below
Please accept our invitation
Bathe yourself in incantation
Let your eyes adjust to dark
Fear thee not the howl nor bark
Be not restless be not tense
There is no need for aprehence
Wear the darkness like a shroud
As the Batman tall and proud
Do not cower nor give cry
When sharp lightning splits the sky
As the dark befriends the fawn
Be thee gone by light of dawn
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/11/25/2021
A Heart Felt Thanks
Today is the day for giving good thanks
To people whose spirits once dwelt on the banks
Of cold crystal rivers and clear running streams
On tall spotted horses who visit my dreams
Thanks to a people who never told lies
Spoke truth from a distance with smoke in the skies
They gave equal reverence to rabbit and bear
And honored the Earth and the trees and the air
A day to say thank you to first nation friends
And offer a humble attempt at amends
For borrowing lands that are soft on our feet
In their destruction lies our defeat
The ways of the white man can never last long
And someday the bluebird will resume his song
So until the Grizzly Bear retakes the meadow
Thanks for the land we turned into a ghetto
Joseph John Racano
Thanksgiving Day 2019
Today is the day for giving good thanks
To people whose spirits once dwelt on the banks
Of cold crystal rivers and clear running streams
On tall spotted horses who visit my dreams
Thanks to a people who never told lies
Spoke truth from a distance with smoke in the skies
They gave equal reverence to rabbit and bear
And honored the Earth and the trees and the air
A day to say thank you to first nation friends
And offer a humble attempt at amends
For borrowing lands that are soft on our feet
In their destruction lies our defeat
The ways of the white man can never last long
And someday the bluebird will resume his song
So until the Grizzly Bear retakes the meadow
Thanks for the land we turned into a ghetto
Joseph John Racano
Thanksgiving Day 2019
God of Oil
Through the dark pollution of the sky he first appeared
Just as the Cassandra’s of antiquity had feared
Wearing he a robe upon a broad and massive shoulder
Sandaled feet allowing open toes be set to smolder
Stabbing through the womb of Earth a sword both broad and mighty
Sooty retribution to avenge sweet Aphrodite
She the goddess made from love so grossly disrespected
Not a sprouted seed or grain of sand was unaffected
Now did he alight upon the reservoirs of oil
Puny were the armies that around his feet did coil
Then his sword began to glow as elven blades of old
Grasping with two hands he smote the black and crusty mold
The Earth began to lurch as in the manner of a quake
And all the mechanisms using oil were set to bake
The atmosphere became opaque and none could breathe the air
Dark departed broken hearted, no one did he spare
Joseph John Racano
Art: ‘Final Judgement’ by Creadfectus
Just as the Cassandra’s of antiquity had feared
Wearing he a robe upon a broad and massive shoulder
Sandaled feet allowing open toes be set to smolder
Stabbing through the womb of Earth a sword both broad and mighty
Sooty retribution to avenge sweet Aphrodite
She the goddess made from love so grossly disrespected
Not a sprouted seed or grain of sand was unaffected
Now did he alight upon the reservoirs of oil
Puny were the armies that around his feet did coil
Then his sword began to glow as elven blades of old
Grasping with two hands he smote the black and crusty mold
The Earth began to lurch as in the manner of a quake
And all the mechanisms using oil were set to bake
The atmosphere became opaque and none could breathe the air
Dark departed broken hearted, no one did he spare
Joseph John Racano
Art: ‘Final Judgement’ by Creadfectus
A Poet’s Duty
It’s time to get in touch
with the spirit within
Estrangement having caused
the spot of trouble we’re in
If everyone would just sit down
and write out a poem
Spirit Mother’s open arms
Would welcome us home
The pen is mighty and
the time is right
Dip your feathered quill
by the fireplace light
Just when you had languished
in a dark despair
Inspiration fills you
in your favorite chair
Knowing as a poet
It’s your paramount duty
To fill the world with light
And a message of beauty
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/03/30/2020
It’s time to get in touch
with the spirit within
Estrangement having caused
the spot of trouble we’re in
If everyone would just sit down
and write out a poem
Spirit Mother’s open arms
Would welcome us home
The pen is mighty and
the time is right
Dip your feathered quill
by the fireplace light
Just when you had languished
in a dark despair
Inspiration fills you
in your favorite chair
Knowing as a poet
It’s your paramount duty
To fill the world with light
And a message of beauty
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/03/30/2020
Editor,
'No, No, Four Thousand Times No'
The weather's getting funny
The storms no longer jokes
I'll tell you resolutely this
Is no time to cut Oaks
For carbon sequestration
and habitat diverse
Cutting down Four Thousand
I can think of nothing worse!
The cats and cars and driveways
Traffic jams and streets
Walking dogs on asphalt that
Will burn their little feets
People, lead your leaders
It's time to take a stand
Make the building smaller and
Protect the trees and land!
Joseph John Racano, Los Osos
(Author, Heritage Tree State Resolution
Former State Central Committee Delegate
California Democratic Party
photo: Racano
'No, No, Four Thousand Times No'
The weather's getting funny
The storms no longer jokes
I'll tell you resolutely this
Is no time to cut Oaks
For carbon sequestration
and habitat diverse
Cutting down Four Thousand
I can think of nothing worse!
The cats and cars and driveways
Traffic jams and streets
Walking dogs on asphalt that
Will burn their little feets
People, lead your leaders
It's time to take a stand
Make the building smaller and
Protect the trees and land!
Joseph John Racano, Los Osos
(Author, Heritage Tree State Resolution
Former State Central Committee Delegate
California Democratic Party
photo: Racano
Parrot Seaturtle
Science finally passed the hurdle
Created a species of Parrot Seaturtle
Kept it deep in a murky tide
They had designs for a children’s ride
But how could the underwriters know
Their scientists went against the flow
Much too late they came to see
Some creations shouldn’t be
Parrot turtle broke his bonds
Hid on floating palm tree fronds
That’s when scientists discovered
A raft of sea kelp flat and smothered
And wherefore didst yon Turtle go?
Trackers pinged from Mexico
But when the team caught up with Turtle
All let loose with blood-scream-curdle
Largest creature now on Earth
Dwarfing Great Blue Whale in girth
When they did attach a towline
Lost ship’s bow and snapped the bowline
To this day in the murky deep
Secrets do the corporates keep
Worldwide many swimmers vanish
Occasional sightings causing panic
Of no use the gun or archer
‘gainst sea-turtle’s night departure
Real estate sold beach-front property
Those who bought were left in poverty
So did science fund itself
Turtle hid off ocean shelf
Swam to shore stood still and then
Sold as real estate again and again
A word of wisdom by the by
For Parrot Seaturtle keep sharp eye
Be not quick to buy the bay
If land be seen moving slowly away
And so the seaborne story goes
Parrot Seaturtle grows and grows
His carapace at a rapid pace
Financial ruin of the human race
JJR
Science finally passed the hurdle
Created a species of Parrot Seaturtle
Kept it deep in a murky tide
They had designs for a children’s ride
But how could the underwriters know
Their scientists went against the flow
Much too late they came to see
Some creations shouldn’t be
Parrot turtle broke his bonds
Hid on floating palm tree fronds
That’s when scientists discovered
A raft of sea kelp flat and smothered
And wherefore didst yon Turtle go?
Trackers pinged from Mexico
But when the team caught up with Turtle
All let loose with blood-scream-curdle
Largest creature now on Earth
Dwarfing Great Blue Whale in girth
When they did attach a towline
Lost ship’s bow and snapped the bowline
To this day in the murky deep
Secrets do the corporates keep
Worldwide many swimmers vanish
Occasional sightings causing panic
Of no use the gun or archer
‘gainst sea-turtle’s night departure
Real estate sold beach-front property
Those who bought were left in poverty
So did science fund itself
Turtle hid off ocean shelf
Swam to shore stood still and then
Sold as real estate again and again
A word of wisdom by the by
For Parrot Seaturtle keep sharp eye
Be not quick to buy the bay
If land be seen moving slowly away
And so the seaborne story goes
Parrot Seaturtle grows and grows
His carapace at a rapid pace
Financial ruin of the human race
JJR
Elven Horn
When they finally chose to show themselves
They were finely toned and handsome elves
Their weapons were the bane of man
Beyond what he could understand
Red and deadly toxic spores
Made silent entry through the pores
Sulfide gas, like the breath of Mordor
Ironically inspired by the exhaust of your four-door
And now cascading down the hill
The rolling logs that maim and kill
Where mudslides flow as rain begot
Log our hillsides, best thee not
For now the elven horn does blare
Take flight the good, beware beware
Athena’s wrath fulfills the dream
And mighty Gaia reigns supreme
Joseph John Racano
When they finally chose to show themselves
They were finely toned and handsome elves
Their weapons were the bane of man
Beyond what he could understand
Red and deadly toxic spores
Made silent entry through the pores
Sulfide gas, like the breath of Mordor
Ironically inspired by the exhaust of your four-door
And now cascading down the hill
The rolling logs that maim and kill
Where mudslides flow as rain begot
Log our hillsides, best thee not
For now the elven horn does blare
Take flight the good, beware beware
Athena’s wrath fulfills the dream
And mighty Gaia reigns supreme
Joseph John Racano
Our Utopia
Have you noticed all the flowers entertaining little hummers
And rain that comes in sheets for writing poems in endless summers
Even lighter spots upon the back of tender fawns
A litany of purposeful delight with every dawn
You and I were born to live a lifetime in Utopia
Everywhere aplenty like the horn of cornucopia
Don’t become too jaded don’t lose your viridescence
Desolation looms we must learn Easter Island’s lessons
Heaven is not guaranteed and nothing is a given
If sinners go to hell the good are in the backseat driven
The time is now protect the world and don’t expect a pardon
The universe is full I fear we only get one garden
So please do thank the ladybug for all her little spots
Line your sunny windowsill with pies and plants and pots
Step outside this evening give a thumbs up to the stars
This is Our Utopia don’t screw it up like Mars
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/9/4/23
photo: Racano
My book: https://www.ebl.com/book/Chronopolis
Have you noticed all the flowers entertaining little hummers
And rain that comes in sheets for writing poems in endless summers
Even lighter spots upon the back of tender fawns
A litany of purposeful delight with every dawn
You and I were born to live a lifetime in Utopia
Everywhere aplenty like the horn of cornucopia
Don’t become too jaded don’t lose your viridescence
Desolation looms we must learn Easter Island’s lessons
Heaven is not guaranteed and nothing is a given
If sinners go to hell the good are in the backseat driven
The time is now protect the world and don’t expect a pardon
The universe is full I fear we only get one garden
So please do thank the ladybug for all her little spots
Line your sunny windowsill with pies and plants and pots
Step outside this evening give a thumbs up to the stars
This is Our Utopia don’t screw it up like Mars
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/9/4/23
photo: Racano
My book: https://www.ebl.com/book/Chronopolis
Canyon of Time
Awash in light the morning bright
But foot prints two beneath my shoe
Sheer cliff face and wall of granite
The longest book a storied planet
Read me now I long to start
Beneath hard stone your gentle heart
Though rage and harshness most men see
I am not fooled but a fool for thee
Canyon father keeper of records
The longest yeoman and river protector
Count like sheep each fish that passes
Drip your dew for the morning grasses
Hot winds blow where lizards bake
All is real and nothing is fake
Hard rocks fall as Bighorn climb
Here we stand in the Canyon of Time
Joseph John Racano
©@10/14/2023
Awash in light the morning bright
But foot prints two beneath my shoe
Sheer cliff face and wall of granite
The longest book a storied planet
Read me now I long to start
Beneath hard stone your gentle heart
Though rage and harshness most men see
I am not fooled but a fool for thee
Canyon father keeper of records
The longest yeoman and river protector
Count like sheep each fish that passes
Drip your dew for the morning grasses
Hot winds blow where lizards bake
All is real and nothing is fake
Hard rocks fall as Bighorn climb
Here we stand in the Canyon of Time
Joseph John Racano
©@10/14/2023