The Titanic, on her maiden voyage, just set sail from the shores of England.
It was the most magnificent ship ever built, and everybody is very excited.
No expense has been spared - the vast dining rooms, casinos, hundreds of
neatlygroomed waiters and polite service staff, string quartets, the works.
Every night at the bar, they had this magician come on and perform the most
wonderfully amazing tricks of conjury the world had ever seen. It's the
first night of the voyage, and everyone is eager to see this great man at
work, except there was one slight problem. There was this parrot, who'd sit
on the bar top by the peanuts, and ruin each trick as the magician performed
them. Each time, the parrot would sit quietly until the trick was almost
completed, and say things like, "Squark! It's up his sleeve!" or "Sqeeek!
He's hidden it in the hat!" etc., and ruin the trick for the magician. Every
time, the parrot would do this, and the magician would get madder and madder
as the night wore on.The same happened on the next night, and the one after
that. The magician would shake with fury at this silly parrot ruining his
world famous show. He spent his days devising even better and more
stupendously amazing trick in an effort to fool this bloody parrot. One
night, the magician is about to perform his greatest trick of the voyage.
The lights are dimmed, a hushed silence sweeps across the bar floor, a drum
roll builds up to a mighty crescendo as the magician performs his final
piece deresistance....and suddenly the ship hits an iceberg and sinks...For
three days, the magician manages to cling to a door floating around in the
wreckage, starving, thirsty. On the third day, he notices at the other end
of the door, the parrot,sitting calmly and quietly, staring back at him.
For three more days the magician just glowers at him, not saying aword -
bitter, hushed, resentful, silence....Until one day, the parrot can't
contain himself any longer and squarks, "Alright! I give up! What have you
done with the ship?!"
