snickering, his spirit was a thing in orbit, floating …
his absurdly astral nature i found fascinating.
wandering a continent far from any turmoil,
this the faux felliniesque tongue-in-cheekster i befriended,
doer of exotic deeds … he seemed to me unflappable
crazy johnnie gumbo.

his brother louie looking pensive
on one new year's eve, quietly explaining how
unshakably outspoken fan of phrickin' frank n. furter¹
rippling hippy mumbo jumbo (crazy johnnie gumbo),
morphed into some off-beat design dude in colorado.

wandering port jeff at night,
approximating frank lloyd wright a' sculpturing,
this kool aid jing feverishly architecting,
hoisting freak flag high above a twinkly crested iwo jima,
long before nick zedd and lungleg
came to burst upon the scene-ah,²

this sweet heathbar crunch james dean,
a trumpet blast of day-glo green.
intimating quality, that business he built up with care.
his main street health food store,
surprising goodness happened there.

mounds of turkish apricots, adriatic figs,
dates, apple rings & raisins
piled high on pine wood shelves.
jars of honey, jam, preserves,

almonds, cashews, walnuts all sold by the pound.
past the barley baskets, beans & sacks of flour
in the dim lit back room vibrant atmospheric music,
mozart and vivaldi … john the faccia in the front.

chatting with me fitfully, at closing time i came to know
this outrageous architect,
community-concerned and caring
crazy johnnie gumbo.

lilliputians pin him to the floor
their teensy cheeks aglow,
fashioning this cartoon toast,
a fancy-free memoriam to
crazy johnnie gumbo!