An Englishman, a Scotsman and an Irishman were the only survivors of a shipwreck in the South Pacific. After three days adrift they washed up on the shore of a nearly barren island. For the next 12 years, they lived a miserable, hardscrabble existence, eating only the few edible nuts and berries on the island and fish. Their hair and beards grew long, their skin became perpetulaly sunburnt, and their clothes rotted off.
One day they found a golden lamp on the beach. The rubbed the lamp, and a genie came out. The men were awestruck as the genie, in a booming voice, announced "I AM THE GENIE FROM THE LAMP. IN RETURN FOR FREEING ME YOU WILL EACH GET EXACTLY ONE WISH. THINK VERY CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU WISH--AS SOON AS YOUR WISH IS UTTERED IT WILL BE IMMEDIATELY AND IRREVOCABLY GRANTED!"
The Englishman didn't have to think long. "I know what I bloody well want," he exclaimed. "I want to be off this God-forsaken island and back in London, with my beautiful wife Bess whom I've missed so dearly all these long, miserable years."
And *POOF!* he was gone.
next, the Scotsman spoke up. "I want to be back in Scotland! Back in Edinburgh with my wife and lovely children whom I've missed growing up all these years stranded on this stinking, festering, hell-hole of an island!"
And *POOF!* he was gone too.
The genie now turned to the Irishman, who looked anxious. "Oh...I dunno," he mumbled. "It's so hard to decide!" He looked around at the island and said, "I miss the guys. I wish they were back."
