Percentage of Americans who haven't had a vacation in more than two years, down 5 points from last year, according to a survey for Allianz Global Assistance: 39

Percentage who won't take a summer vacation, but intend to take an annual vacation at some other point in time this year: 13

Source: Allianz Global Assistance.

Percentage of Americans who say that legal recognition of same-sex marriage is "inevitable," including 85 percent of gay marriage supporters, as well as 59 percent of its opponents, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center: 72

Percentage of the public who favor same-sex marriage: 51

Today, percentage of the public who say they know someone who is gay or lesbian, up from 61 percent in 1993: 87

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

Percentage of Americans who believe that people typically end up splurging and spending more money than they planned to during road trips, according to surveys conducted by RetailMeNot in conjunction with The Omnibus Co.: 95

Ranks of staying within budget, finding affordable gas and locating restaurants with good deals on the list of factors that people most commonly find hard to do: 1, 2, 3

Source: RetailMeNot.com.

Percentage of senior managers who said not asking others for help is the top networking mistake, according to an OfficeTeam survey: 42

Percentage who said failing to keep in touch with contacts is a mistake: 28

Percentage who said not thanking people for their help is the biggest mistake: 17

Source: OfficeTeam.

Percentage of Americans who expect the bride to wear a white dress: 54

Percentage who believe in "waiting" for the wedding night: 51

Source: Harris Interactive.

Rank of the Ritz Carlton Central Park in New York City on the list of the most expensive luxury hotels in America, with an average price tag of $874 per night for the least-expensive double room, according to luxury-hotels.com: 17

Source: Luxury-Hotels.com.

Percentage of Americans traveling by plane who have ever been on a flight with somebody suffering from air rage, according to research by YouGov: 13

Percentage of travelers who admit to feeling their own stress-related rage while flying: 17

Ranks of cost, small seats, a lack of seating space and security checkpoints on the list of things about flying that frustrate almost half of Americans: 1, 2, 3 (tie)

Source: YouGov.

Though many may pine for the physical appearance they had in their younger years, percentage of America's seniors who indicate that they always feel good about their physical appearance, compared with 61 percent of 18-to-34-year-olds: 66

Percentage of middle-aged Americans who report feeling good about their appearance: 54

Source: Gallup Organization.

Ranks of local banks, online retailers, credit card companies and online e-commerce companies on the list of companies that are most likely to be seen as doing a good job of protecting their customers' personal information and privacy, according to a survey by Ipsos Public Affairs: 1, 2, 3, 4

Percentage of Americans who have experienced negative consequences as the result of a data breach, including those who lost money but were reimbursed (13 percent), those who lost money and were never reimbursed (5 percent) and those who had their identity stolen (5 percent): 20

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

IDLE THOUGHT

"The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it." -- Jean-Paul Sartre, writer and philosopher

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

As of Dec. 31, 2013, number of convenience stores in the United States, according to figures released by the National Association of Convenience Stores: 151,282

Of all retail outlets in the U.S., percentage that is accounted for by convenience stores: 34.3

Source: National Association of Convenience Stores.

Percentage of American adults who claim to have used an online dating site, according to a survey by YouGov: 21

Of those, percentage of adults aged 35 to 54 who have gone on dates with someone they met online: 76

Percentage of the younger users, aged 18 to 34, who have gone on dates with someone they met online: 47

Source: YouGov.

Number of Americans who die every day from opioid prescription painkillers -- more deaths than heroin and cocaine overdoses combined -- according to the National Safety Council: 45

Percentage of the world's population living in the U.S.: 4.6

Percentage of the world's opioids that are consumed here: 80

Source: National Safety Council.

Percentage of Americans who think baseball players are paid more than they are worth, according to a survey by the Saint Leo University Polling Institute: 67

Source: Saint Leo University Polling Institute.

Percentage of children age 6 to 17 who have at least one electronic device on in their bedroom while they are sleeping, according to findings from the National Sleep Foundation's Sleep in America 2014 poll: 72

On average, number of hours of sleep per night that teens who leave devices on are estimated to get on school nights: 7.2 hours

On average, number of hours of sleep per night that teens who never leave devices on are estimated to get: 7.7 hours

Source: National Sleep Foundation.

Percentage of shoppers who said they would lend money to a friend, according to a CreditDonkey.com survey: 66

Percentage who said they would lend money to a family member: 81

Source: CreditDonkey.com.

Percentage of people who worry that they will not be able to retire at the time and in the style they hoped for: 78

Percentage who would consider developing a budget: 64

Percentage who would be open to setting a specific financial goal for the future: 52

Percentage who would be likely to hire a financial adviser: 16

Source: RetailMeNot.com.

Despite increased fees and stricter size restrictions, percentage of travelers who said they still prefer to check their luggage, according to findings from surveys conducted by The GO Group LLC: 32

According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, amount of money that passenger airlines collected in baggage fees in 2013, 1.6 percent of total operating revenue: $797 million

Source: GO Airport Express.

Percentage of American adults online who use social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace or LinkedIn, according to Pew Research: 66

Percentage who say that connecting with old friends they've lost touch with is a major reason behind their use of these technologies: 50

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

Percentage of workers age 50 and over who change jobs or retire who elect to leave the money from their defined contribution account, such as a 401(k), in the prior employer's plan, according to EBRI's analysis of data from the Health and Retirement Study: 27.4

Percentage who are receiving the benefits now: 26.1

Percentage who roll it over into an IRA: 24.9

Source: EBRI.

Idle Thought

"It's best to give while your hand is still warm." -- Philip Roth, novelist

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

Percentage of Americans who feel vacation-deprived, yet they fail to take all of their available paid time off, according to a survey conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Purchasing Power: 59

Percentage of full-time employees who receive any paid time off who didn't take a vacation getaway last year in which they truly went away: 28

Percentage of those employees who said it was because they couldn't afford to do so: 52

Source: Purchasing Power LLC.

Percentage of employees who said they have worked for a micromanager (one who peers over employees' shoulders, stifling their independence and meddling in the minutiae of their everyday work), according to a survey developed by Accountemps: 59

Of those who felt they'd been micromanaged, percentage who said it decreased their morale: 68

Percentage who said it hurt their productivity: 55

Source: Accountemps.

Ranks of mustard, onions, chili, slaw and ketchup on the list of the most favored toppings for hot dogs, according to a study by JJ's Red Hots: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: JJ's Red Hots.

For week-long trips, average amount travelers can save per airline ticket if they travel on Tuesdays instead of Sundays, according to a survey by CheapAir: $77

Average amount travelers can save by traveling in August vs. July: $100

Source: CheapAir.

Ranks of Bill Gates (net worth $80.2 billion), Warren Buffet ($64.2 billion), Larry Ellison ($48.2 billion), Michael Bloomberg ($33.7 billion) and Sheldon Adelson ($32.8 billion) on the list of the top five richest self-made Americans: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Wealth-X.

Ranks of Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama on the list of presidents who Americans would most like to have help with the barbecuing, according to a Harris poll: 1, 2, 3

Ranks of George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama (selected from the last six presidents) as those most likely to end up falling in the swimming pool with their clothes on: 1, 2, 3

Source: Harris Interactive.

Amount the average working-age U.S. household has saved for retirement, according to the most recent survey of consumer finances sponsored by the Federal Reserve: $3,000

Average amount that households aged 55 to 64 have saved (figures include both those that do and do not have retirement accounts): $12,000.

Average amount in households aged 55 to 64 who do have retirement accounts: $100,000.

Source: Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc.

In 1979, number of paid work hours per year for the typical woman, according to research by the Center for Economic and Policy Research: 925

By 2012, number of hours of paid work per year done by the typical woman: 1,664

Percentage of unpaid child-care (and elder-care) work that is done by women: 66

Source: CEPR.

Percentage of Americans who say they're "confident" that they'll take a vacation in 2014 -- defined as leisure travel of at least a week at least 100 miles from home, according to an Ipsos Public Affairs poll conducted on behalf of Allianz Global Assistance: 52

Percentage who believe it is important that they take an annual vacation: 56

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of teens who use the Internet, according to The Pew Internet & American Life Project: 93

Percentage of online teens ages 12 to 17 who have participated in one or more among a wide range of content-creating activities on the Internet: 64

Percentage who share their own artistic creations online, such as artwork, photos, stories or videos: 39

Source: PEW Internet and American Life Project.

Idle Thought

"You've got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was." -- Irish Proverb

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