PROFESSOR PERIWINKLE MEETS GENIE

Professor Periwinkle was rubbing his glasses one day when there was a whoosh and a puff of smoke and then there was Genie

'Gosh,' said Professor Periwinkle.

'Didn't you rub your lamp and say Abracadabra?' said Genie.

'No,' said Professor Periwinkle. 'I was just rubbing my specs.'

'Same difference,' said Genie. 'I'm here now anyway and your wish is my command. You can have anything."

'Oooh.' said Professor Periwinkle.

'A mansion, a Ferrari, a tropical island. Just name it.'

'Oooh,' repeated Professor Periwinkle, 'in that case I'd like a good Czech-English dictionary.'

'Oh,' said Genie, a little disappointed. 'Is that all?'

'I expect it's a challenge in its own little way,' said Professor Periwinkle.

So Genie created a dictionary.

'Thank you,' said Professor Periwinkle. 'It's good and fat and in several volumes.'

'It'll be hard to get home,' said Genie. 'What about that Ferrari to transport it to your study in style?'

'Oh no,' said Professor Periwinkle. 'But if you could create a bus ticket....'

'A bus ticket!' said Genie, even more disappointed.

'Thank you,' said Professor Periwinkle. 'Will you come again?"

'I don't know,' said Genie. 'Perhaps I've got more important clients. But you have three wishes, Professor. What will your final one be? Your own private beach?'

'I wonder if you could possibly give me a new left lens in my glasses,' said Professor Periwinkle, 'the present one is a little scratched.'

So Genie made him a new lens.

'I'm off now,' said Genie, 'I've got a client who wants a spaceship the size of a passenger liner and a huge suite of rooms for himself and his harem.'

'Oh dear,' said Professor Periwinkle.

'Opportunities like this come once in a lifetime. You have to bite the bullet and grasp the nettle and...what's the other phrase?'

'Take the bull by the horns', said Professor Periwinkle. 'And there are several more.'

'Exactly. Well, there we are. I guess some people are underachievers, Professor.'

'I guess they are,' said Professor Periwinkle. 'You'd never catch me going into outer space without a good set of glasses, a proper ticket and plenty of dictionaries. You never know what they might speak up there.'

'Weird' said Genie, and disappeared in another puff of amoke.