The intelligent humor thread

As the waters recede, all the animals disembarked from the Ark, with strict, and divinely mandated, instructions from Noah to go forth and multiply.

After 6 months Noah thought he should check up on everyone, to make sure they were doing their bit. Results were variable. The mice had clearly taken

the work to heart and were already multi-generational. The horses had made progress, with the mare heavily pregnant. Even the elephants were clearly

working hard, with the lady elephant showing unusual appetite and cravings for the topmost branches of trees that he was reliably informed meant that all

was well. Only the snakes, of all the animal kingdom, gave Noah cause for concern. The adders, in particular, clearly loved each other very much, had

started to make a very cozy cabin out of rough-sawn logs of wood, but showed no sign of generating little baby adders.

Never mind, said Noah. These things take time. Just keep patient and the Lord will provide.

After another 6 months Noah did his rounds again. All was good, the horses had a very sweet little foal, the lady elephant was now obviously pregnant, and

Noah smiled to see that all was well with the Lord's creation - except for the adders. They had just finished the cabin and were very proud of their work.

Noah, after those months at sea, had become quite tactful. He did not point out that they, of all creatures, seemed unable to carry through the greater

work of the Lord. Never mind, he said. Just be patient, and the Lord will provide. But in truth there was this time no reassuring still small voice.

In his heart he worried: perhaps he had selected an incompatible couple and a future world without one of its most beautiful ophidian species

would be his fault.

So it was a downhearted Noah who went round on his third round of inspections. Who can blame him for leaving Mr & Mrs Adder till last? The mice, by

now, had taken instructions so seriously that if it were not for the sterling work of the owls, grateful for a rapidly breeding food source, Noah would have

had overpopulation concerns. The horses had a foal and a yearling, and were clearly going to procreate like clockwork, once a year. The elephants, to

Noah's relief, actually had a little baby elephant and although that seemed, for now, enough for them, he supposed that given their long lives all was

as it should be.

Noah approached the adders` Homestead with some trepidation. He could see a beautifully finished cabin made of wood. The adders had even managed to

make (adder-sized) tables and chairs, all fashioned from logs. When he knocked on the door he only had a few seconds to notice yet more beautiful furniture

inside the log cabin, before a seeing the jubilant adder couple, with the place teaming with little baby adders coiled round chair legs, slithering over walls and

ceiling and dropping from the door lintel.

That is amazing! Said Noah to the adders. I'm so glad for you. But how on earth did you do it so quickly?

Oh, well, said the embarrassed adders, blushing, you see everything changed when we started to use the log tables.