Estimated percentage of the original Pilgrims who survived a very hard year at Plymouth Colony from the fall of 1620 to the fall of 1621, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 50

Number who were saved from starvation by the Wampanoag, who gave them food and taught them farming and food preparation and storage in their new land, as well as ways to survive the bitterly cold winter: 53

Number of Native Americans who celebrated the Pilgrim's first bountiful harvest in the fall of 1621, when they held a day of Thanksgiving: 91

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who consider themselves value seekers -- someone very aware of prices, bargains, coupons and specials, according to a survey conducted on behalf of Whole Foods Market: 64

Percentage who consider themselves one-stop shoppers who want all their needs met by one store, from staple pantry items and meats to family-friendly offerings and body care: 41

Source: Whole Foods Market.

Percentage of young adults ages 25 to 34 who are married in 2012, down from 55 percent in 2000, according to a Population Reference Bureau report: 46

Median age at first marriage for men: 28.1

Median age for women: 26.5

Source: PRB.

By 2014, projected percentage employment rate for those over the age of 55 (comprising more than 21 percent of the U.S. work force), according to the Department of Labor, according to a survey from Adecco: 41

Percentage of hiring managers who said the greatest challenge to hiring mature workers is their difficulty in learning/adapting to new technology: 39

Ranks of high salary/compensation demands and overconfidence in their abilities and experience on the list of the biggest interview mistakes made by mature workers: 1, 2

Source: Adecco.

Ranks of holidays, bills and living arrangements on the list of conversations most likely to cause couples tension in the car, according to research from Allianz: 1, 2, 3

Percentage of women who admitted they are likely to discuss the relationships of friends and family in the car: 18

Percentage of women who just enjoy a good gossip in the car: 32

Source: Allianz Life Insurance.

Percentage of Thanksgiving dinners that will feature oven-roasted turkey as the main entree, according to a study by Wayfair.com: 80

Rank of stuffing and mashed potatoes on the list of perennial favorite side dishes: 1 (tie)

Source: Wayfair.com.

Percentage of IT pros who consider the IT department integral to the business, according to InformationWeek Reports Research: 60

Percentage of non-IT respondents who feel the same: 43

Percentage of non-IT respondents who consider their IT department a support or maintenance organization, compared with 39 percent of IT: 54

Source: Information Week.

With the automated sales experience relatively new (especially in stores), percentage of consumers who still prefer the help of knowledgeable sales staff, according to Ipsos Open Thinking Exchange: 70

Source: Ipsos Marketing Open Thinking Exchange.

Percentage of employers who have scheduled both Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 22) and the Friday after as paid days off for all or most of the work force this year, according to the Bloomberg BNA survey of year-end holiday practices: 73

Percentage of all employers who have scheduled a paid day off for Thanksgiving Day: 99

Source: Bloomberg.

Percentage of Americans who are expected to travel this Thanksgiving, according to a survey by HomeAway: 26

Percentage who plan to travel over the December holidays: 40

Source: Home Away.

Idle Thought

"Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them." -- James Baldwin, writer (1924-1987)

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

Percentage of general shoppers who compare store brands to brand names, according to a study conducted by The Integer Group: 77

Percentage of shoppers who indicate that they continue to buy brand-name products over store-brand alternatives because they trust the brand: 51

Source: Integer Group.

Projected total election-related ad specialty (aka promotional product) spending in 2012, according to the Advertising Specialty Institute: $870 million

Cost of "I Meow for Michelle" cat collar in Democrat Barack Obama's re-election campaign store: $12

Cost of Romney sweatshirts: $60

Source: Advertising Specialty Institute.

Percentage of U.S. iPad owners who feel disgruntled that Apple has released a new iPad 4 only seven months after the release of the latest iPad 3, according to Toluna QuickSurveys: 45

Percentage of U.S. consumers who believe Apple's reputation has been tarnished by the iMaps fiasco following the iPhone 5 release: 26

Source: Toluna QuickSurveys.

Percentage of coffee drinking workers who actually drink two cups or more each workday for energy and motivation, according to a survey commissioned jointly by Dunkin' Donuts and CareerBuilder: 63

Percentage who drink three cups or more: 28

Percentage of workers age 18 to 24 who say they are less productive without coffee: 62

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Amount of money that adults in affluent households are expected to average in gift purchases (almost four times the $549 for all families), according to the National Retail Federation's Fall 2012 Affluent Market Tracking Study: $2,102

Ranks of some form of currency (a gift card/certificate or money/check) and clothing on the list of top choices on the holiday wish list of affluent women: 1, 2

Ranks of clothing and money on the list of top choices on the holiday wish list of affluent men: 1, 2

Source: National Retail Federation.

Percentage of global respondents who prefer straightforward ads over funny ones online and on their mobile devices, according to Ipsos: 58

Percentage of North Americans who prefer ads that make them laugh over those that are straightforward: 56

Source: Ipsos-Reid.

Year that the spinach-eating sailor Popeye first appeared -- and soon spinach was the third favorite children's food, after turkey and ice cream: 1929

Annual value of the spinach crop in the U.S.: $204 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Of Americans who decorate for the holidays, percentage who will spend more money on decorations for the December holidays than on Halloween or Thanksgiving, according to a survey conducted by RetailMeNot and The Omnibus: 86

Average amount of money that consumers spend on holiday decorations from October through December for everything from jack-o'-lanterns to cornucopia centerpieces to Christmas trees: $284

Source: RetailMeNot.com.

Percentage of Americans who have a jaundiced view of the nation's overall economic health and believe that the economy has "not improved or gotten better" in recent years, according to a survey from Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute: 59

Specific to the manufacturing sector, percentage of Americans who feel it is likely to improve in the next 12 months: 16

Percentage who feel it will weaken: 23

Source: Deloitte.

Percentage of moms active in social media who are buying products as a result of a social media recommendation, according to a study conducted by Child's Play Communications: 92

Of all social media platforms, percentage of moms' purchasing decisions that were impacted by blogs more than any other platform: 80

Percentage of moms who tried Pinterest for the first time this year: 63

Source: Child's Play Communications.

Idle Thought

"The worst kind of people are those who confuse kindness for weakness." -- Werner Makowski, banker (b. 1929)

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

Percentage of Apple fans who would like to have lunch with Steve Jobs, according to the results of a poll by ProtectYourBubble.com: 33.6

Percentage who would want to break bread with Albert Einstein: 27.3

Percentage who would want to spend time with JFK: 23.1

Source: Protect Your Bubble.

Percentage of Americans who say they feel closer to their family when sharing a meal together, according to a survey fielded by ORC International: 94

Percentage of respondents who say they would like to eat together as a family more than four nights a week: 75

Percentage who actually do: 44

Source: Olive Garden.

Ranks of London, New York, Tokyo, Shanghai and Bangkok on the list of the top cities around the world to hail a taxi, according to the annual global taxi survey compiled by Hotels.com: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Globally, approximate percentage of people who are willing to tip a taxi driver: 46

Source: Hotels.com.

In the 54 days from Nov. 1 through Dec. 24, 2011, percentage of products that were on sale on Black Friday below their initial holiday season price, according to a study by ShopAdvisor that tracked the prices of 252 toys: 46

If Santa had purchased all 252 for his bag on Black Friday, amount of money he would have saved compared to the original holiday season prices: $515

Source: ShopAdvisor.

Percentage of Americans who say that when it comes to vacuuming, they cut corners by skipping areas underneath or behind furniture and clean only when they see visible dirt on the floor, according to a Kenmore brand survey: 49

Percentage of Americans who occasionally or never take off their shoes before entering the house: 50

Source: Russell Research.

Percentage of people who enjoy spending time with their in-laws on Thanksgiving, according to a study by Wayfair.com: 70

Percentage of survey respondents who would rather do just about anything else -- whether that be washing the Thanksgiving Day dishes, going to work or standing in Black Friday lines: 30

Percentage of this year's Thanksgiving gatherings that will include more than 10 people around the table: 33

Source: Wayfair.com.

Percentage of American small business owners who say that using business cards to network is "very impactful," according to an Ipsos poll conducted for MOO.com: 34

Number of business cards given out by the average American small business owner in a given month: 40

Source: MOO.com.

As announced in February 2012, the historic joint state-federal settlement among 49 state attorneys general, the federal government and the country's five largest mortgage servicers, amount of money provided in relief to distressed borrowers and states, according to Enterprise Community Partners: $25 billion

To date, amount states have planned to spend for housing and foreclosure-related activities: $977 million

Source: Enterprise Community Partners Inc.

Percentage of managers and supervisors who say that "it's important for them to continue improving their skills in managing distressed workers," according to a poll conducted on behalf of Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace: 91

Source: Ipsos Reid Public Affairs.

Percentage of Americans who believe that using a free Wi-Fi connection can lead to identity theft, according to a survey conducted with Private WiFi: 79

Percentage who admitted to accessing confidential work-related information while using a public hotspot: 57

Source: Private WiFi.

Percentage of employees in 24 countries who say they would be very likely to take a full-time job in another country for two to three years with a 10 percent pay increase, according to a poll conducted by global research company Ipsos: 25

Percentage of global employees who agree that "there is nothing my employer could do to convince me to take an international assignment": 35

Source: Ipsos Global Public Affairs.

To the man who only has a hammer, everything he encounters begins to look like a nail. -- Abraham Maslow

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