Kotowaza of the day: Just don't forget to chew

Japanese:

ひだるい （ひもじい） 時にまずい物なし

Romanized:

Hidarui (himojii) toki ni mazui mono nashi

Meaning of Japanese:

Nothing tastes awful when you're starving

English equivalent:

Hunger is the best sauce
Hunger finds no fault with the cookery
Hunger makes hard beans sweet

Kotowaza of the day: Building character, again

Japanese:

かわいい子には旅をさせよ

Romanized:

Kawaii ko ni wa tabi wo saseyo

Meaning of Japanese:

If you love your child, send him/her on a journey

English equivalent:

??

Related:

Spare the rod and spoil the child*
If you love someone, set them free

*Many sources list this as the sole translation of the kotowaza. Perhaps an endorsement of corporal punishment is the closest thing English has, but I'm not willing to make it an "English equivalent." The Japanese is actually closer to the "heavy work" kotowaza on 10/21. The idea, in olden times at least, was that a journey would involve some eye-opening trials and tribulations, and that these experiences would hopefully expand the child's horizon.

Kotowaza of the day: While we're on the subject...

Japanese:

金の切れ目が縁の切れ目

Romanized:

Kane no kireme ga en no kireme

Meaning of Japanese:

When the money runs out, so does the love
The end of the money is the end of the relationship

English equivalent:

When poverty comes in at the door, love flies out of the window
Out of money, out of mind
Nobody loves you when you're down and out

Kotowaza of the day: Love doesn't pay the bills

Japanese:

出雲の神より恵比寿の紙*

Romanized:

Izumo-no kami yori Ebisu-no kami

Meaning of Japanese:

The paper money of Ebisu is preferable to the matchmaking deity at Izumo

English equivalent:

Money makes marriage
Money makes the world go round

*A small play on words is involved here. The kotowaza asserts that the kami of Ebisu is better than the kami of Izumo, but while Ebisu's kami means paper (or paper money), Izumo's is the character for god.

The Izumo Taisha shrine of Shimane in western Japan is known for its patron deity of wedlock. Singles and couples alike visit there in hopes that a happy marriage will somehow result. Ebisu is one of the major Shichifukujin, or seven lucky gods of Shinto Japan. He is the patron deity of business, savings and money. A shrine in Kyoto, among others, bears his name, as does a neighborhood in Tokyo and a brew now owned and marketed by Sapporo Beer.

Kotowaza of the day: Because it builds character

Japanese:

若い時の辛労は買うてもせよ

Romanized:

Wakai toki-no shinrou-wa kautemo seyo

Meaning of Japanese:

Even if you have to pay for it, hard work while young will be useful in the future

English equivalent:

Heavy work in youth is quiet rest in old age

Kotowaza of the day: The great unwashed masses

Japanese:

烏合の衆

Romanized:

Ugou-no shuu

Meaning of Japanese:

A mindless mob like a gathering of crows

English equivalent:

The mob has many heads, but no brains
Sheep with no shepherd

Kotowaza of the day: Full cycle

Japanese:

木の実は木の本

Romanized:

Ki-no mi-wa ki-no moto

Meaning of Japanese:

The fruit that a tree bears, when fallen, will give root to another tree

English equivalent:

Dust thou art, and to dust shalt thou return
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust

Kotowaza of the day: Perils of Multitasking

Japanese:

田の事すれば畠が荒れる

Romanized:

Ta-no koto sureba hatake-ga areru

Meaning of Japanese:

While you are tending to the rice paddy, the other fields will grow wild

English equivalent:

One thing at a time
You cannot eat your cake and have it, too

Related:

Time waits for no man

Kotowaza of the day: Common cold, or gateway illness?

Japanese:

風邪は万病の基*

Romanized:

Kaze-wa manbyou-no moto

Meaning of Japanese:

A cold may lead to thousands of different illnesses

English equivalent:

A May cold is a 30-day cold

*Also written 風邪は万病の元, 風邪は百病の本, or other variations.

Kotowaza of the day: ... but don't tell anyone else!

Japanese:

三人寄れば公界

Romanized:

San nin yoreba kugai

Meaning of Japanese:

Three people together makes a public forum

English equivalent:

A secret between more than two is no secret
A secret is too little for one, enough for two, too much for three

Related:

Two's company, three's a crowd

Kotowaza of the day: Tweedle Dum, Dee

Japanese:

瓜を二つに割ったよう / 瓜二つ

Romanized:

Uri-wo futatsu-ni watta you / Urifutatsu

Meaning of Japanese:

Like a melon split in two

English equivalent:

(like) Peas in a pod
Spitting image
As like as two eggs

Any readings?

Maybe this is merely a sign that I finally got adequate sleep, but for the first time in ages I awoke yesterday able to recall partial content of my most recent dream. Here's the gist: I bought a crimson two-piece suit (no extra pair of slacks) from a tailor who, in real life, is a Fedex salesman who annoys everyone in my department at work by showing up daily to beg for business.

Kotowaza of the day: But what of five-year forecasts?

Japanese:

捕らぬ狸の皮算用

Romanized:

Toranu tanuki-no kawa zanyou

Meaning of Japanese:

To calculate the profit on a racoon pelt before the racoon is caught

English equivalent:

Don't count your chickens before they are hatched
Catch the bear before you sell his skin