absence vs slim pickings

absence

noun
  • Lack; deficiency; nonexistence. 

  • A state of being away or withdrawn from a place or from companionship 

  • The period of someone being away. 

  • Temporary loss or disruption of consciousness, with sudden onset and recovery, and common in epilepsy. 

  • Lack of contact between blades. 

  • Failure to be present where one is expected, wanted, or needed; nonattendance; deficiency. 

  • Inattention to things present; abstraction (of mind). 

slim pickings

noun
  • A small amount, especially of money; paucity. 

How often have the words absence and slim pickings occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )