lame excuses

see which way the wind blows, don't hurry, work with patience and restraint, wait for the result

be over-solicitous for something

reference to a learned man in an unsuitable or inferior job

said of a person who deceives or breaches the promise

an allusion to someone doing a menial job despite being educated, when bad luck strikes one has to do a job much below his or her intellect

oil-well

mismanagement is often frightening

(a place) to be overcrowded or filled to capacity

be pregnant