Headlines and More (Idioms): 
Vancouver Sun and The Globe and Mail

The Food Bank
A “food bank” is a place where donated food is distributed to needy people. This word is approximately 17 years old.

There but for the grace of God go I.
It takes only a simple accident or illness to put me in the same situation as a poor person.

Her girlfriend insulted her, but she shrugged it off. It means she didn’t mind it and forgave her.
It was “like water off a duck’s back”. (Same as shrugged it off)

When he retires, we will have a roast for him and invite all his friends. I hope he has a thick skin because we are going to work hard to insult him. A roast is an event where old friends joke and tease someone to honour him or her.

Teasing comes in two varieties: mean-spirited and good-natured. A person with thin skin is easy to hurt. This person is sensitive and doesn’t like you to joke about him or her.

She retreats into her shell. Like a turtle, when she feels hurt, she won’t talk to you anymore. We also say, she shuts down. Another way to say this is to close the door on the conversation.

He didn’t like that movie. He said it was for the birds. It was useless like a bird, which isn’t very intelligent.

What is a flick? This is a slang word for a movie. A chick flick is a movie that women would like. A chick is an informal word for woman. (not polite)

If The Grizzlies would only get their defence to dig in, they might win more often. The idiom comes from when soldiers dig to make a strong defence. The Grizzlies defence needs to try harder.

Shareef on fire. This means that the basketball player is doing very well and is increasing his score.

Ottawa farm aid is a slap in the face for the farmers. The farmers think the aid is so small it is a kind of insult to them.

The Canadian armed forces are stretched to the limit. They cannot do any more. The army has no extra people or supplies to help.

Bill Clinton’s bid for power worked last time. He asked for another four years and was successful.

Police gearing up for the protest in Seattle next week. The police will get their equipment ready and cancel the leaves for the police officers.

The men and women who run races are pushing the envelope of human ability. New records are set every year for the fastest human. The envelope is a kind of limit that we believe is the best or farthest or fastest possible.

Some computer people like to work at the bleeding edge. This is the newest and most advanced science in the world today. On the razor’s edge means on a very fine and narrow place.

The bad boy took the police on a wild goose chase and so his friends were able to escape. This means he gave the wrong directions to fool them.