Can you share some funny clever short stories?

Sure. One story is about a magician. He was on a cruise ship performing tricks. He had a parrot as his assistant. Every time the magician did a trick, the parrot would yell, 'It's in his sleeve!' The magician was furious but couldn't do anything. One day the ship sank. The magician found himself floating on a piece of wood with the parrot. The parrot looked at him and said, 'Okay, I give up. Where's the ship?'

Sure. There was a little boy who wanted more cookies. His mom said he could have one more if he could name two things that were clean. He quickly said 'soap and water'. His mom was so amused by his cleverness that she gave him a whole plate of cookies.

Another one is about a dolphin. In an aquarium, a dolphin noticed that the trainers would reward it when it did a new trick. So the dolphin started combining different tricks it already knew in new ways to keep getting rewards. This shows the dolphin's intelligence in understanding the reward system and being creative to get more treats.

Sure. There is a story about a crow. Once, the crow was very thirsty. It found a pitcher with a little water at the bottom. But its beak couldn't reach the water. So it dropped pebbles into the pitcher one by one. As the pebbles filled the pitcher, the water level rose and the crow was able to drink the water. It shows how clever the crow can be in solving problems.

Then there's 'The Necklace' by Guy de Maupassant. A woman borrows a diamond necklace to attend a ball, but loses it. She and her husband spend years working hard to pay off the debt for a replacement. In the end, she discovers that the original necklace was a fake. This story cleverly shows the vanity and the consequences of false pride.

Sure. Here is one. A magician was walking down the street and turned into a grocery store. Another one is that a snail got mugged by two turtles. When the police asked what happened, the snail said, 'I don't know. It all happened so fast.'

One characteristic is the unexpected twist. For example, in a story where a cat tries to catch a mouse, but in the end, the mouse outsmarts the cat in a really unforeseen way. Another is the use of clever wordplay. Like a pun that makes you laugh and also shows the intelligence behind the writing. Also, they often have relatable characters. We can easily identify with the silly dog or the smart kid in the story, which makes the humor and cleverness more enjoyable.

Clever funny short stories usually contain elements of absurdity. Take the story of the man and the penguin. It's absurd that the man takes the penguin to the movies after being told to take it to the zoo. And they can play on words or misunderstandings. In the story of the man seeing spots, the misunderstanding between seeing a doctor and seeing spots creates the humor. These stories also tend to be concise, getting to the point quickly to deliver the humor and cleverness without dragging on.

Sure. Here is one. A magician was walking down the street and turned into a grocery store.

There was a man who went to the doctor. He said, 'Doctor, every time I stand up quickly, I see Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy.' The doctor said, 'Well, I'm not sure what's wrong with you, but I think you're seeing Disney.' Well, here's another. A snail got mugged by two turtles. When the police asked him what happened, he said, 'I don't know. It all happened so fast.'