With no further mention about what is happening or not happening on the Hill, I made a list of phrases we use in our work environment that have a direct link to the past joy, thrill and ever entertaining circus world, 147 years and counting:
Whose running this 3-ring circus?
I’m walking a tightrope around here
Our processes are like going through a ring of fire
I work with a bunch of clowns
Too much work. It's a juggling act
I’m surrounded by lions
This department is a circus
A freak show!
My boss is a ringmaster
Get this monkey off my back
I’m jumping through hoops
Our proposal puts us in the center ring
A merger! It's like being on a circus train
This job is like trying to ride two horses at one time
The show must go on
It’s a Barnum and Bailey world,
Just as phony as it can be.
But it wouldn’t be make-believe if
You believed in me
(It’s Only a Paper Moon, 1933)
Image: The Strobridge Litho. Co., Cincinnati & New York.
Library of Congress, Public Domain
Robert Waters
2018/2025