Scrape the bottom of the bucket

   

to choose from what is left over, or to select from among the worst. There is the idea of settling for 2nd best because you have no other options or you may also be desperate in your decision-making.

Man: Wow!     “Talk about…”: to emphasize something, especially when criticizing or complaining, e.g.: “Talk about bad luck!”

1. I have watched so many movies that it’s difficult to find a good movie to rent or download, so these days I’ve been scraping the bottom of the bucket and watching movies that I normally wouldn’t consider. It’s amazing what we will settle for when we are desperate for entertainment or really bored! Recently I watched the movie, “Brokeback Mountain”. Talk about scraping the bottom of the bucket!

2. Don’t you feel sometimes that we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes time to vote for a presidential candidate, mayor or governor? Many times it’s a case of choosing from the least worst. Don’t you ask yourself, “Man, where do they find these people!?”

3. When you buy an air ticket at the last minute, you may have to scrape the bottom of the bucket… you will probably not get the seats of your choice, and may not be able to sit together with your friends or family because you have to accept the seats that are left over. You will likely sit right next to the toilet!

Set up

The “Huns” are a tribe of barbarians who are the enemies 
of the imaginary kingdom of Id.

To set up: to construct, to configure (electronics), to assemble, to establish (create) something, to erect or to organize.

1. When you want to set up (establish) your own business, you will probably need some capital (money) to start with… at least for advertising your services. You will also need a game plan - and more than that you, will need persistence.

2. To “set up shop” is an idiomatic expression which means to establish a business or an organization. When a company of any sort sets up shop in a foreign country because the exchange rate is more favorable (and thus the labor is cheaper), we call this outsourcing. Do you know of any companies that outsource their manufacturing and set up shop overseas?

3.  It is becoming easier and easier to set up (create) a blog page. Google is making the interface really easy for new bloggers to figure out exactly what to do step by step.

4. Before any band plays music, they need to set up the drums, microphones, amplifiers etc.