Issue link: https://imageup.uberflip.com/i/1468415
SOLERA DIAMOND VALLEY | JUNE 2022 15 By Dick Roppé, Resident According to the dictionary, an idiom is "a phrase, saying, or a group of words with a metaphorical (not literal) meaning, which has become accepted in common usage. An idiom's symbolic sense is quite different from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made." Got it? It is estimated that there are at least 25,000 idiomatic expressions in the English language. I got the idea for this article when I heard a guy in a commercial, who was on some kind of supplement, say his friends commented that he had a "memory like an elephant." Memory like an elephant is an idiom. If there are an estimated 25,000 English idioms, how many are tied to animals? I took the bull by the horns and found some. Not to be too redundant, here's a short, one paragraph, little take on a few animal idioms. The other day a friend called and invited me for lunch to discuss, in his words, "this really great" business deal. We met at Polly's Pies, placed our order and agreed to split the bill. With a sheepish grin, he began telling me about this venture, that sounded more like a Ponzi scheme. I told him to hold his horses, I wasn't interested in buying a pig in a poke. Wanting to quickly change the subject, I asked him if he was still drinking 10 cups of coffee a day. He replied that he had quit cold turkey three months ago. Suddenly, he gets ants in his pants, saying he has to hoof it and meet another potential "client." He chickens out and leaves without paying his share of the bill. Not wanting to irritate a friend, I decided to clam up and bid him adieu. Some friend, right? He weasels out of splitting the bill, so I had to pay the lion's share. Getting ready to leave, I saw a dazzling flash of lightening and heard a ginormous clap of thunder. When I looked outside, I noticed it was raining cats and dogs. "Holy cow!" I said to myself. A Little Bird Told Me