What common phrase is represented by this rebus?

Easy going:
Weak, "I'm going."
Tough, "I'm staying."

Medium going:
Weak, "I'm going."
Tough, "I'm staying."

Tough going:
Weak, "I can't do it, I'm staying!"
Tough, "Lets get going."

Checkers was meeting with the lazy Sorceress and Mr.Tin, two well known dog breeders. They were just ending a conversation about politics when Mr.Tin asked Checkers if he had ever owned a dog. Checkers, trying to make it seem as if he knows something about dogs said, "Yes, I used to have a Basenji. He would always bark when someone was coming up the driveway." Mr.Tin and the lazy Sorceress knew he was lying and decided to leave. What did he ...

Randy liked to give his children challenging games instead of television and video games. He incorporated the use of rebus puzzles into everyday life for his kids.

One day he made a rebus for them to try and decode. It was set up like this:

Some items were lying all over a church. The church was burning down, and this is the fate of the items.

Item one: Found near the front row pews. It was in the fire, and was lost.
Item two: Found ...

The following are famous books and their authors. Letters have been taken from each book and each author. From the letter list below fill in each letter to give the names of the books and authors.

An-e-s and D-m-ns
D-n -ro-n

Pe- Se-at-r-
S-ep-en K-n-

C-r-nic-es of N-r--a
C - L-wi-

A F-re-e-l to A-m-
E-n-st H-mi-gw-y

A M-sq-e of Me-c-
Ro-e-t Fr-s-

T-e Hu-t for R-d Oc-o-e-
T-m C-a-cy

Bl-ac-e-s
Jo-...

I can be hard, I can be soft. I can scratch my fellow self, or I can be scratched. I'm not always as strong as another version of me. I can be used as a form or communication, as well as presents or luxury. Inside and outside the earth's crust I am made, and waiting times range from one day to millions of years. I come in many colors when I am solid, and I can also be grouped together to make another common solid. Controversy has been made ...

In each sentence a word is concealed, such as the word no in sentence five. If you can find the buried words and read them in order from 1 to 6, they will form a well-known proverb.

1.The word buried here has only one letter.
2.Did you find a jelly roll in Gaskin's Bakery?
3.It's the best one I've ever seen.
4.The rug at her stairway was made in India.
5.He's an old friend.
6.Amos sold his bicycle to a friend.