Colgarse & Descolgarse

Colgarse literally means 'to hang oneself' and descolgarse literally means 'to unhang oneself'. Although the literal meanings are worth knowing, you'll rarely hear anybody using them in everyday Chilango speak. Colgarse and descolgarse are typically employed to convey something else.

Colgarse means to use more time that is allotted, to exceed a time limit. Colgado can be used in reference to a person who often se cuelga and also to a place that is far, far away (i.e. getting there takes a long time). Le  cuelga (literally, 'it hangs from it') means 'it is still going to take a while.'

Descolgarse means to go from one's current location to another, usually to meet other people and hang out. Just like a monkey would descend from a tree, a buddy unhangs from his place to meet friends.

Example 1:

Faustino: Descuélgate al reven. Va a estar de huevos. Van a caer un titipuchal de pieles.
Melquiades: Pus la neta sí me late, pero tu cantón está súper colgado.

Faustino: Come to the party. It'll be a lot of fun. There will be bueatiful women aplenty.
Melquiades: I truly like the idea, but your place is really far away.

Example 2.

Melamina: Este maestro siempre se cuelga con sus clases.
Ponderosa: Y todavía le cuelga para que concluya este semestre.

Melamina: This professor always stretches his lectures well pass the limit.
Ponderosa: And it's gonna be a while before the semester is over.

Note: Colgado is also used in expressions such as no me vayas delar colgado or me dejaste colgado hijo de la chingada. In this case, colgado is a reference to the metaphor colgado de la brocha, i.e. hanging from a paintbrush. Hence when somebody abandons you, it's perfectly fine to say that metaphorically such person removed the ladder you were on and left you hanging from the paintbrush.