​Once in a while, I like to have fun
Gathering words and rhyming a ton.
Some of my poems are meant as a joke,
And some of my poems are meant to provoke
A little more thought on this world we share.
And then there are others, if you dare:
some of them dark, some of them strange.
In short, you can choose from quite a range.

If you like poems and like when they're free,
Then I've posted them here for all to see.
Just browse by Topics, or just scroll through,
Or use the Search if that's best for you.
If you like what you read and if you don't mind,
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Jack, dear Jack, the Pumpkin Lord,
Is racking up his candy hoard.
With candy corns and chocolate too,
Lollipops and gum to chew,
Licorice and gummy bears,
Piled up a hill of stairs.

Strewn throughout a little town
Where he is king of much renown.
From here, he rules o’er Halloween,
And though it’s true, he’s seldom seen,
He’s still the mighty Pumpkin Lord,
And he’s racking up that candy hoard.​

Stop the Steel

They warred and warred
for years and years
destroying lives
and causing tears.

Said the people
with a righteous zeal:
"Stop this madness.
Stop the steel."

And the swords were thrown away.

They built and built
for years and years
cities that stacked
in endless tiers.

Said the people
with a mighty peal:
"Stop this madness.
Stop the steel."

And the Earth was embraced as home.

They raced and raced
for years and years
with trains and cars
from engineers.

Said the people
with a need to heal:
"Stop this madness.
Stop the steel."

And the engines all went silent.

With steel gone, a peace then grew,
And folks connected with those they knew.
And trees grew tall and skies turned blue,
And songs arose, and spirits flew.
And then they saw what was always true,
And they dreamed a dream and built anew.

January 17-18, 2020, in Detroit, we went from bare grass to about 6" of snow. While watching it come down, my brain connected to Edgar Allan Poe, whose birthday is on January 19. And so I produced this little whimsy for his birthday. For a more serious Poe poem, you can enjoy my ode to him from 2016 by clicking here.

Oh, if he could only see the snow,
That long-gone Edgar Allan Poe,
Would it surprise him? Yes, or no?
Would it occur to give him woe?

For on his birthday, it would seem
That snowflakes fly and snowflakes gleam.
And while from other worlds he dreams,
We're wrapped in white and cold extremes.

But hope abounds upon this day,
Beneath the clouds, beneath the gray.
While streets would call for horse and sleigh,
The spring is not so far away.

Two months, perhaps, I must agree,
But days are longer, can't you see?
While Poe goes on in realms carefree,
The sun returns in victory.
​

​It's Holiday Time
The Christmas / Holiday / Black Friday / Cyber Monday Shopping Song
by Steve McCardell

We're going shopping. It's holiday time.
Time to find deals and to get into line.

Bust through doors to see what you find.
The presents are here, it's such a good time;
it's holiday time.

If you're patient you'll lose the good price.
You'll understand then it's not time to be nice.

Push them over if they get in your way.
It's time to score big and reduce what you pay.
For what did I say?
It's the holiday.

​
No no ... let's not push that fellow ...
he might give you what for.
But maybe just snag that great deal
from that person's basket.
I do think it was half off ... and she's not looking.


Sometimes we think that we ought to be good
for that fat fellow dressed all in red.
But if we shopped with the good that he wants,
our wallets would fall over dead.
So while others are jingling all the way,
let's make sure we get the deal of the day.

Never mind the reason for those deals at Kohl's
was a special little baby that came to save our souls.
It's time to get a deal for the holiday.

Finish your turkey and jump in the car.
The stores are staying open and they're not that far.

Make sure employees are kept at their jobs
so they can be swamped by the shopping mobs.

Score what you can with Black Friday deals,
then get even more with Cyber Monday steals.

It never hurts if you're shopping all day,
especially if the weather is all cold and gray.
Shopping's what it means to have a holiday.

Giving this season holds so much in store
since we bought ourselves a TV and so much more.

That's why it's worth it to push through the fray.
To do this kind of shopping. It's a holiday.

This poem has been launched as a Kindle book on Amazon. It opens with the following lines:

Dear little children, did you know
That most adults are really slow?
I mean they're dim, they're not too bright,
Their intellect's an awful fright.

For instance, children, they will say
That nighttime is as safe as day.
But you and I know what is right:
The shadows come alive at night.

The book can be purchased here.

It's the Halloween sensation that you know all the clubs will be playing throughout October. Right? Get ready to sing and dance to this humorous hip hop / rap Zombie song. Lyrics posted below the video (and are written out in the video).
​

I am a Zombie: the Zombie Song

I am a zombie.
They call me boogie man too
'Cause they don't know what I am
And they don't know what to do.

But I'm a zombie,
And I'm just a guy who's dead
'Cause I got into a fight
And I got hit in the head.

So I'm a zombie,
And I'm hungry all the time
For the brains inside your head
And they tell me it's a crime.

But I'm a zombie,
So you tell me what to do.
Should I starve myself to death?
Well what if it was you?

Now I'm a zombie,
And maybe I can't die,
But starving isn't fun
So your morals don't apply.

See I'm a zombie,
And I want to eat your brains
'Cause I need to fill my gut
And I stay away from grains.

As a zombie,
It's kind of funny too
That you scream and run away
When I get so close to you.

But as a zombie,
Well I really cannot run
So you just could walk away
And I not catch anyone.

Now I'm a zombie,
And there's not much more to say
'Cause I don't do much for fun
And I sleep throughout the day.

'Cause as a zombie,
Well I only like the night,
And that's when I take a look
For just a little bite.

And as a zombie,
It's just a bite of brain,
... And if I kill you first
Then you won't feel any pain.

But as a zombie,
It's pretty clear to see
That you do not like to die,
And you won't give brains to me.

So as a zombie,
No hobbies as I said,
And hard to get the brains
So I don't like being dead.

But as a zombie,
At least I make this rhyme,
And the only problem is
That I sing it all the time.

As a zombie
Who not as smart as you,
It hard to make it stop
And I don't know what to do.

I am a zombie,
But I'm not a boogie man.
I'm just a guy who's dead
And who needs to make a plan.

But I'm a zombie,
And for plan I need a brain,
... So I can stop this rhyme
Before it start again.

See I'm a zombie ...

Quick ... quick ... you see? It's starting up. It's starting all over. It's going to make me rhyme.

See I'm a zombie ...

Quickly now, I need brains. Give me some. Come back here. Hey ... where you going? Brains ... zombie ... just dead because I got in a fight.

Looking for free images that you can use in any personal or business project? How about high-resolution royalty-free images that don't cost you a dime? Check out "The Unsplash Poem."
​

The Unsplash Poem

When you're online and have something to share,
And you'd like to use images at a price that's fair,
Nothing's as fair as the low price of FREE,
And that's where Unsplash comes in, you see.

For Unsplash offers pictures galore,
Not just one or two or three or four,
But thousands upon thousands, all sorted for you
So you can get back to what you must do.

They're all high-res and the best of the best,
For they've all gone through the editor's test.
Thousands are added every few days,
And all can be used in hundreds of ways.

Give flare to your blog or business card.
Enhance a brochure -- it's not that hard.
Videos, flyers, book covers too ...
Unsplash is here for whatever you do.

And you'll pay Unsplash nary a dime,
For their pictures are free, yes ... all of the time.
Used for yourself or on projects you sell,
Used on a gift for Aunt Gertrude as well.

Perhaps you need photos of a jelly fish.
Or a picture of some gourmet dish.
Maybe it's an image of the moon at night.
Just use the search at the top of the site.

It's really that easy to use Unsplash
To beautify projects without spending cash.
And now that you know, it's time to start
Enhancing your projects with Unsplash art.

What the Common People Choose
aka The Cryptocurrency Poem

​Once upon a time ago, I had a vivid dream
Where powers in the government had reached to an extreme,
And corporations wielded such sway upon the land
For they had politicians simply eating from their hand.

But then arose a currency that caught them all off guard,
For they did not produce it and controlling it was hard.
They wanted first to stop it, to ban its legal use,
But the people just ignored them and their asinine abuse.

So then the legal powers across the planet Earth
Decided that this currency had a special worth:
The currency was digital, which meant it could be read
And gave the means for tracking as we bought our daily bread.

But only if they owned it, if it were truly theirs.
Then they'd see in detail our most intimate affairs.
They'd know just what we shopped for, and even when and where.
They'd know what we believed in, they'd know for whom we cared.

And even worse, if worse there was, they'd have complete command
O'er who could spend the money that was given by their hand.
Cause a threat to their control, they'd shut off all your cash
And you'd be forced to beg for food or find it in the trash.

Away they did with dollars then, rolled out their plan for all,
And with their legislative weight they made their legal call:
"Join us cashless. Join us now. Trade in your other coin.
We'll care for you and feed the poor. It's time for you to join."

They said it all with such a smile they had most people heed,
For after all the government provided for their needs.
But others were unsure then; the coin they had was free
From legal interference and the act of bended knee.

The coin held by resisters was apportioned far and wide,
Controlled by no one person; controlled by no one side.
The left, the right, the rich, the poor, each race and gender too,
Could spend as they wished to spend, and do as they wished to do.

The government took action, though, and made it widely known
That only those in terror cells would ever dare to own
A coin not made by government. And so they grew the fear
Among the common people that the enemy was near.

The government began a hunt for all who dared to choose
A coin they did not offer. These terrorists would lose.
But as they started up their hunt, they made a plain mistake:
They chased too many people and shook the rest awake.

And then the population stood all in one big line
With the goal of independence. And a light began to shine.
It shone right down across them all. The government just stared.
It couldn't quite consider that its population dared.

And in this dream I felt a hope I never thought I'd feel,
As if the common people could finally start to heal
From the long abuse of government, and leaders finally could
Support us and protect us, the way that leaders should.

I woke then from this dream of mine and wondered what I'd seen:
Our future, or just wishful thoughts, or something in between.
And as I sit and ponder this, as I sit and muse,
I feel it all comes down to what the common people choose.

Below is my poem: Patriots Rise: Ode to the Red White and Blue, written in 2017. It is a call for patriots to rise and stand for what the flag represents. This is not in blindness to the errors our country has made, as all countries do, but in respect for the ideal our nation stands for, and our role in bringing that about.

I have since produced this as a song and video you can watch here.