squirrel cage

Noun

 * 1) A circular cage for a squirrel or other small animal, which rotates vertically as the animal runs at the bottom.
 * 2)  A tedious, repetitive, unfulfilling activity or situation, especially one in which no progress is achieved.
 * 3) * 1986, Madison Smartt Bell, Straight Cut (2011 Open Road Media edition), ISBN 9781453235515, (Google Preview):
 * So maybe I wouldn't even call Kevin. . . . Or I could just see him socially. . . . Or I could . . . . Or, or, or. . . . I was still running around in this squirrel cage when the big gray poisonous cloud that usually covers New York materialized just off the right wing.
 * 1)  Any other device, such as a fan or rotor, that resembles a squirrel cage in form.
 * 1)  Any other device, such as a fan or rotor, that resembles a squirrel cage in form.