give her the bells and let her fly To acquiesce to the inevitable, regardless of cost; to acknowledge reality or failure before risking further loss; to make the best of an unalterable situation. This expression originated in the sport of falconry, in which a worthless bird was released without bothering to remove the valuable bells attached to it.
like it or lump it To accept and put up with; to resign one-self to the inevitable; to make the best of an undesirable situation. The exact origin of this informal expression is difficult to determine. The most plausible suggestion is that lump it originally meant ‘gulp it down’ and was probably said in reference to distasteful medicine. Figurative use of the expression appeared in print by the early 1800s.
I’ll buy clothes as I see fit, and if anybody don’t like it, why they may lump it, that’s all. (Harriet Beecher Stowe, Poganuc People, 1878)
Sometimes lump it means simply ‘dislike’ as in the following quotation:
Whether we like him or lump him, he [the Interviewer] is master of the situation. (Grant Allen in Interviews, 1893)
Like it or lump it is usually heard in situations where no actual choice exists.
that’s the way the ball bounces That’s life; that’s the way it goes; there’s nothing to be done about it. Just as one cannot determine ahead of time how a ball will bounce, so too no one can predict or prevent the twists and turns of fate. This expression and the analogous that’s the way the cookie crumbles are usually said in resignation to a fait accompli.
Picturesque Expressions: A Thematic Dictionary, 1st Edition. © 1980 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.