budget dust
n.— «It seems strange to talk about $30 million here and there as mere budget dust—as the budget writers call it. But in the state’s $23 billion budget, $30 million is a bit like the loose change you find under your sofa cushions.» —“In state spending, hot-button items amount to mere ‘budget dust’” by Rebecca Cook in Olympia, Wash. AP Dec. 29, 2002. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In 1971, when a new public library opened in Troy, Michigan, famous authors and artists were invited to write letters to the city’s youngest readers, extolling the many benefits of libraries. One of the loveliest was from E.B. White, author of...
Cat hair may be something you brush off, but cat hair is also a slang term that means “money.” In the same way, cat beer isn’t alcoholic — some people use cat beer as a joking term for “milk.” And imagine walking on a...