谈论金钱问题的表达方式（中等水平）
Expressions to Talk About Money Troubles
People have probably been having money troubles since money was invented thousands of years ago. And now there are lots of expressions to talk about money problems.
Here are three you might hear in conversation:
When James Bond actor Daniel Craig first started acting, he also worked as a waiter to try and pay the bills. He sometimes even had to sleep on a park bench because he didn't have enough cash for a place to stay. So we could say that he was "living from hand to mouth," which means he had just enough money to eat and live.
This idiom may come from a time of famine, when people would immediately eat any food that they could get their hands on.
Even worse than not having enough money is being in debt. You could be "up to your ears in debt," which means you have more debt than you can manage — like being in deep water without knowing how to swim. And it's not just your ears: you can even be up to your "neck" and "eyes" in debt — and other things too. You can say, "I'm up to my neck in work," or "I'm up to my eyes in reports."
Of course, getting out of debt isn't always easy — but if you try "living on a shoestring," you might be able to start saving some cash. Doing something "on a shoestring" means you do it with a very small amount of money.
People aren't sure where this idiom comes from, but it might have started because shoestrings — or shoelaces — aren't very expensive.
Discussion
1.Which of the expressions featured in the article did you find interesting?
2.Which of your friends or family would you say is the best at managing money?
3.Has the cost of living changed a lot where you live over your lifetime?
4.Are you currently trying to save money? If so, what are you saving for?
5.Are there any interesting money-related expressions in your language?