The Little Rabbit Joke
A guy passes a store selling cheap trinkets from around the world. A small figurine in the window catches his eye. It's a little rabbit with a mallet getting ready to hit some mochi. The man recognises this as the rabbit in the moon from the story and decides he really likes it. He goes inside and asks the sales clerk about the price.
Upon hearing the price, the guy balks. He really likes this figurine though and attempts to barter. The sales clerk refuses to barter but informs the man that his store will have sales all this week, starting tomorrow. The man informs the sales clerk he will return the next day. Hearing this, the clerk recites an old adage about delaying his decision. The guy rolls his eyes and dismisses it.
The guy returns the next day, as he said he would. The figurine is now on a shelf infront of the register with a 10% off sign below it. At 10% off, this is still too much for the guy. He again attempts to barter with the sales clerk, with no luck. Again the sales clerk informs him that he won't barter, that there is a better sale tomorrow, and recites the old adage. Again, the guy dismisses it, saying he will return tomorrow.
Four days this scene repeats and on the fifth day, the figurine is 50% off. At this point, it isn't about the figurine but the principle of the matter. The guy is very tempted to purchase the figurine, but knows the sale will last another 3 days and might get a better deal tomorrow. He tries to convince the sales clerk to give him tomorrow's sale price today. The sales clerk again tells him he's not changing the price. The guy storms out of the store in a huff, but not before the salesclerk recites the old adage.
The next day, the guy returns. He walks straight up to the counter to see what today's sale price is. To his surprise, the spot his figurine was in now contains a small gong with a rubber mallet. He searches the store for the figurine he wants but can't find it. Finally he confronts the sales clerk, demanding to know where the rabbit figurine went. The sales clerk smiles and shakes his head as he repeats the old adage: "I told you yesterday, What's hare today might be gong tomorrow".