There is no argument that the idiom refers to the obvious explanation that something is cheap and sufficiently abundant to be easily acquired. Knowyourphrase.com explains that the dime, or “dimes” as it was originally called when the coin was introduced as U.S. currency in the 1790s, was actually worth a dime with the dominate metal being silver. The Coinage Act of 1965 changed the composition to 75 percent copper and 25 percent nickel. That debasement could have been the origin of the expression, but there was a reference in the Galveston Daily News in   1866 about peaches being a dime a dozen and pigs being even cheaper. A 1937 reference describes “Smiles being a dime a dozen in the Yankee clubhouse.”

Tinyonline explains that the idiom is Royal Air Force slang meaning bored, disgruntled, or disgusted. It came from a description of a metal object that has rusted. That appearance reminds of cheese that has turned brown during cooking and the sourness of cheese that has gone bad.

I read a bridge column by Frank Stewart in the Denver Post on June 11, 2012 that “King Mithridates VI of what is now Turkey was always trying to avoid assassination. He took food with a concoction that included a grain of salt, believing it to be a poison antidote. Hence, taking something ‘with a grain of salt’ – with caution. The Phrase Finder adds that the expression means that a statement can be accepted but with “…a degree of skepticism about its truth.” For those who want to replicate the antidote, the grain of salt was added to two dried walnuts, two figs, and twenty leaves of rue that were pounded together.

I expected some sort of complicated description of the origin and meaning of this expression, but the Freedictionary.com had the most interesting discussion. The definition is straight forward, and it means “…to work very hard to achieve something.” It also can mean to “…laugh very energetically.” The etymology is described as being “…based on the idea that hard physical work or laughter could damage your gut (stomach).”

I saw this phrase in a Pickles cartoon by Brian Crane, and it made me curious. The Word Detective has an entertaining article about “folksy” expressions. It explains “darn” is a common euphemism for “damn.” Toot has meant “to call or proclaim loudly” since the 16^th century. The expression is intended to affirm that you strongly agree with a statement.

The Phrase Finder defines the expression means “…to be rapidly deteriorating—on course for disaster.” It goes on to say that it isn’t all that clear why a handbasket is preferred to transport people to hell, although there is a theory that it comes from baskets being used to catch heads removed by the guillotine. An alternate expression is going to hell in a handcart. A medieval stained glass church window shows a woman being taken to purgatory in a wheelbarrow pushed by a blue devil.