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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, June 21, 2009

Goodies for dad a big $9B ka-ching


By John MacIntyre

Projected total consumer spending for Father's Day, according to industry research firm IBISWorld: $9 billion

Projected rise in the sale of pampering services and products this Father's Day — indicating many dads are going from handyman to dandy man: 35.7%

SUMMER PERKS

Percentage of workers who said a flexible schedule is the summer benefit they would most like to have, according to a survey by OfficeTeam: 38%

Percentage who said they'd like to leave early on Fridays: 32%

Percentage who look forward to summer activities such as a company picnic, etc.: 6%

BLUE BOOK BESTS

Rank of the Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen TDI on the list of best cars for a cross-country road trip, according to the Kelley Blue Book: 1

Rank of the Porsche Cayman S on the list of best cars for a solo flight: 1

Rank of the Ford F-150 on the list of best vehicles for a towing trip: 1

JUST DUCKY AT 75

Year that one of America's all-time favorite celebrities, Donald Duck, stepped into the entertainment world — short in stature and temper, with a tendency to fly into a squawking rage, and whose long-term living arrangements with his nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie, was unusual for the day, according to page 306 of "Chase's Calendar of Events 2009": 1934

Percentage of single parents today who are men, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 16% (compared with 10% in 1970)

CROP BUSTERS

Estimated number of types of food crops there once were, according to the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization: 10,000

Today, number of plant species that feed most of the world's population: 150

Number of crops that provide 80 percent of the dietary energy derived from plants: 12

Percentage of this dietary energy provided by rice, wheat, maize and potatoes alone: 60%

COUCH NATION

Percentage of Americans getting at least 30 minutes of exercise five or more days a week, according to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index: 27%

Percentage who report exercising for at least 30 minutes less than three days per week: 49%

IDLE THOUGHT

"Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.

— Oscar Wilde, writer