Figuratively Speaking

Ranks of jewelry, event tickets and electronics on the list of what consumers categorize as "splurge" purchases, according to a survey by RetailMeNot: 1, 2, 3

Percentage of consumers who consider cars to be splurges: 39

Percentage who consider purses/briefcases to be splurges: 34

Source: RetailMeNot.com.

Percentage of consumers who continue to "feel" overcharged in the auto repair process and rank the experience of going to the repair shop/dealership to get their car repaired on a par with going to the dentist (with women preferring the dentist), according to a consumer survey from AutoMD.com: 83

Percentage of women who have a negative view of the auto service center/repair shop experience, with only 12 percent viewing it positively: 44

Source: AutoMD.com.

Percentage of consumers who check to see if the products they are buying are "natural," despite there being no federal or third-party verified definition for this term, according to a survey by the Consumer Reports National Research Center: 59

Percentage of consumers who believe that packaged foods carrying the "natural" label should not include artificial ingredients: 87

Source: Consumer Reports.

Despite a recent study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) that found two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese, percentage of Americans who say they are neither overweight nor are they trying to lose weight, according to data aggregated from Gallup's Health and Healthcare surveys from 2011 through 2013: 55

Percentage of Americans who describe themselves as being overweight: 40

Source: Gallup.

Among the 36 million people who moved between 2012 and 2013, percentage who said the most important reason for moving was to be closer to work or for an easier commute (up from 3 percent in 1999), according to a report released by the U.S. Census Bureau: 5

Percentage who cited the desire for cheaper housing (up from 6 percent in 1999): 8

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who will be packing a bag and hitting the road this summer when they take at least one summer road trip, according to a survey by Bridgestone Americas: 83

Percentage of respondents who choose road travel over air because it gives them greater flexibility: 58

Percentage of summer road travelers who choose to travel by vehicle rather than plane because their destination is too close to fly: 44

Percentage who say they just enjoy driving: 38

Source: Bridgestone Americas Inc.

Percentage of Americans who support the idea of a bride's father "giving her away," according to a Harris Poll: 84

Percentage who also agree with the tradition of having a women-only bridal shower: 74

Percentage who agree that the bride and groom should spend the night before their wedding apart: 71

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of Americans who would support legislation similar to a European law -- the "right to be forgotten" -- that allows citizens to request that links to "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant" information be removed from search engines, according to a survey by YouGov: 55

Percentage of Americans who are most interested in removing financial information, including bankruptcy judgments: 35

Percentage who would erase links to ex-partners or friends: 29

Source: YouGov.

With the 2014 FIFA World Cup underway, rank of Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal's forward and captain, on the list of the wealthiest footballers competing in this year's tournament in Brazil, according to Wealth-X: 1

Ronaldo's estimated net worth -- accounting for nearly one-quarter of the combined net worth of the 10 players in the Wealth-X World Cup Rich List, beating other high-profile soccer players such as Lionel Messi from Argentina and England's Wayne Rooney: $250 million

Source: Wealth-X.

Percentage of job hunters who look for an employer that is -- first and foremost -- honest, according to a 2014 Employer Branding Study released by Randstad-USA: 78

Ranks of reliable, secure and well-respected on the list of personality traits significant to job hunters: 2, 3, 4

Source: Randstad-USA.

Idle Thought

"There are many ways to be free. One of them is to transcend reality by imagination, as I try to do." -- Anais Nin, writer

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

Percentage of time spent in meetings that professionals say is unproductive, according to a Robert Half Management Resources survey: 25

Percentage of employees who feel one of the most common mistakes meeting leaders make is not sticking to an agenda: 30

Percentage who cite the lack of a clear purpose for the gathering: 30

Source: Robert Half Finance & Accounting.

On average, percentage of their bill that Americans say they usually tip for good service when dining out, according to a recent online survey by a Harris Poll that was conducted on behalf of Michelin: 18

Percentage of Americans overall who say they usually tip between 15 and 20 percent for good service when dining out: 70

Percentage who say they typically tip more than 20 percent: 10

Source: Michelin.

Percentage of Americans who read juice labels at least sometimes, according to a survey by the Jamba Juice Co.: 78

Percentage of people who read juice labels who do so to make sure they are not buying "from concentrate" juice: 32

Percentage of those who read labels who do so to see how much sugar is in the juice they buy: 64

Source: Jamba Juice Co.

Percentage of Americans under the age of 35 who have been bullied, harassed or threatened online, or know somebody who has, according to a poll released by Rad Campaign, Lincoln Park Strategies and Craig Newmark of craigconnects: 47

Percentage of respondents who said they'd been harassed online who said it happened on Facebook: 62

Percentage who said it happened on Twitter: 24

Source: Rad Campaign.

Percentage of pet owners who have made a social media account for a pet, according to research by SquareTrade: 17

Percentage who are a "friend" or "follower" of pets on social media: 25

Percentage who have "spoken" to a pet over Skype, FaceTime or other online video chatting software: 18

Source: SquareTrade.

Year when commercially made ice cream, one of the joys of summer, was first advertised in New York City, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1786

In 1910, average amount of ice cream that Americans consumed per year: 2 pounds

Today, average amount of ice cream that Americans consume per year: 18 pounds

Annual value of the business of making ice cream and frozen desserts: $7.6 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Rank of Jerry Seinfeld, with an estimated net worth of $820 million, on Wealth-X's Hollywood and Bollywood Rich List: 1

Rank of Shah Rukh Khan, the only Bollywood actor on Wealth-X's top 10 list, with an estimated net worth of $600 million: 2

Ranks of Tom Cruise ($480 million), Tyler Perry ($450 million) and Johnny Depp ($450 million) on the list: 3, 4 (tie)

Source: Wealth-X.

Percentage of the gasoline purchased in the country that is sold by convenience stores, according to a survey released by the National Association of Convenience Stores: 80

Percentage of consumers who say they will drive for a summer vacation: 84

Percentage who say they travel by car because they have the freedom to choose where to stop: 52

Source: National Association of Convenience Stores.

Percentage of homeowners across the country who say their outdoor living space is the favorite place in their home, according to a Saber Grills' study: 83

Percentage of current U.S. homeowners who consider their outdoor space the heart of their home: 81

Source: Saber Grills.

Among those who have ever stayed in a hotel, percentage who say they have wanted to take home the hotel bed/pillows/duvet because the sleep was so good, according to a study conducted by Ipsos on behalf of the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in the United States, Great Britain, Russia and China: 31

Source: Ipsos Global.

Idle Thought

"They know enough who know how to learn." -- Henry Adams

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

As the weather heats up, percentage of HR managers who said their company offers a more relaxed dress code during the summer, according to a survey from OfficeTeam: 57

Percentage of executives who said clothing choices affect a worker's chances of earning a promotion: 80

Source: OfficeTeam.

Percentage of married adults who say that credit scores were important to them when choosing a spouse, according to a survey from Experian Consumer Services: 50

Ranks of family goals, life goals and finances on the list of attributes married adults cite as important when choosing a spouse: 1, 2, 3

Source: Experian Consumer Direct.

Net worth of "Kimye" -- the power couple Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, according to a Wealth-X estimate that shows the bulk of their combined fortune belongs to West: $155 million

West's estimated net worth: $110 million

Kardashian's estimated personal fortune, mostly from her reality TV show "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," as well as the $800,000 stake she holds in her own branded perfume and the $1.5 million stake in the fashion boutique DASH, which she runs with her sisters Khloe and Kourtney: $45 million

Source: Wealth-X.

Average percentage of North American employees who report bosses losing their temper either "all the time" or "often," according to a survey by AMA Enterprise: 14

Percentage of employees earning under $25,000 who said their boss loses control of his or her emotions all the time/often: 23

Percentage of employees earning $75,000 plus who said the same: 9

Source: American Management Association.

Percentage of Americans who indicate they have assigned specific chores to each member of their household, according to a survey conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of Honeywell: 53

Percentage of respondents who say that getting chores done around the house is always a conflict: 27

Percentage who disagree: 73

Percentage of respondents who say they have to nag those they live with to help with the household chores: 35

Source: Ipsos Reid public Affairs.

Of the top 25 tech companies (by market capitalization), percentage that have founders who are immigrants or have at least one immigrant parent, according to an Internet trends presentation by Mary Meeker for Pew Research: 60

Ranks of India, China, Canada, the Philippines and South Korea on the list of the top countries of birth for recipients of H1-B visas issued to high-skilled workers in 2012: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends.

Percentage of Americans who believe that God created humans in their present form, (down from 44 percent in 1982), according to a Gallup poll: 42

Percentage who believe humans evolved, with God guiding (down from 38 percent in 1982): 31

Percentage who believe humans evolved, but God had no part in the process (up from 9 percent in 1982): 19

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of high school students for whom costs are the driving force in their choice of college, according to the College Savings Foundation's survey of high school students across the country: 76

Percentage of seniors who are changing their higher education choices and going to public, local or community school options: 28

Source: College Savings Foundation.

Average amount U.S. small and medium-sized businesses with 11 or more employees spend per year on tech support, according to Parks Associates research: $3,000

Percentage of these SMBs who report having a support subscription: 28

This year, estimated amount that SMBs will spend for computer and network setup and installation services: $400 million

Source: Parks Associates.

Ranks of Singapore, Hong Kong and China, and Japan on the list of destinations in Asia for a dream job transfer, according to a Cartus Survey of Human Resources Professionals: 1, 2, 3

Rank of the United States on the list of leading destinations worldwide: 1

Source: Cartus.

Idle Thought

"We must, however, acknowledge, as it seems to me, that man with all his noble qualities ... still bears in his bodily frame the indelible stamp of his lowly origin." -- Charles Darwin

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)