Posted on: Sunday, March 22, 2009
Dating the boss: It happens a lot
By John MacIntyre
Percentage of Americans who admit they have dated someone with a higher position in their company, according to a survey by http://www.CareerBuilder.com: 34%
Of those, percentage of female workers who have dated their boss within the past year: 47%
Percentage of men who have dated the boss: 38%
SKIMPING ON ROMANCE
Percentage of U.S. couples who are finding that the worldwide financial crisis is affecting their relationships at home, causing them to argue more often, primarily about finances and household chores, according to PayPal's third annual Can't Buy Me Love international survey conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs: 43%
Percentage of couples surveyed who say they have ended a relationship due at least in part to financial issues: 11%
Percentage of couples in the U.S. who are hiding purchases from their partners this year: 23% (18% in 2008)
CHOC AND AWE
Percentage of Easter chocolate sales for which women are responsible, as reported in the Daily Telegraph: 66%
Percentage of these purchases that they eat before they share the rest: 60%
AUTO GLOOM
Percentage drop in North American car and truck production in the first seven weeks of 2009 versus the same period in 2008, according to Viraf Baliwalla, a consumer advocate for car buyers and founder of Automall Network: 40% (from 2,157,688 down to 886,614)
Advertised cost of a Chevy Malibu with approximately $4,000 in manufacturer rebates: $22,000
Cost to the consumer for a brand-new midsize vehicle if the government were to match the rebates rather than hand out bailouts: $14,000
WHAT WIDE WORLD?
Percentage of American adults who have not lived outside of the state in which they were born, according to Pew Research: 57%
Percentage who have never left their original hometown: 37%
THE OCTOMOM POLL
Percentage of Americans who feel very sympathetic or somewhat sympathetic toward the single woman in California with six children who recently gave birth to octuplets through in-vitro fertilization, according to a Gallup Poll: 26%
Percentage who feel somewhat unsympathetic, or very unsympathetic: 70%
BUS, TRAIN OR PLANE
Number of intercity bus locations in the U.S., according to the American Bus Association: 3,046
Number of airports: 604
Number of intercity rail stations: 525
On the list of the safest and greenest modes of transportation, rank of bus travel: 1
IDLE THOUGHT
"It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly unless one has plenty of work to do."
— Jerome K. Jerome, humorist and playwright
