Of Americans who will travel this holiday season, ranks of visiting with friends and family, dining and shopping on the list of what will be the most popular activities, according to the 2013/2014 AAA year-end forecast: 1, 2, 3

Source: AAA.

Date that the first Thanksgiving service known to be held by Europeans in North America occurred in Newfoundland, although earlier church-type services were probably held by Spaniards in La Florida, according to data prepared by the Division of Cultural History, National Museum of American History, in cooperation with Public Inquiry Services, Smithsonian Institution: May 27, 1578

For British New England, year that some historians believe the Popham Colony in Maine conducted a Thanksgiving service: 1607

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of their work hours that actually go to their primary job duties as stated by enterprise workers, according to a survey commissioned by AtTask, the leader in Enterprise Work Management and conducted online by Harris Poll: 45

Percentage of workers citing excessive email as a leading factor to stymied productivity: 43

Source: AtTask.

Percentage of U.S. adults who say celebrity gossip/scandal stories are over-covered in U.S. news media today, according to the results of The Harris Poll: 76

Percentage who feel U.S. elections are over-covered in U.S. news media: 33

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of shoppers who said getting ahead of the deals motivated them to incorporate shopping into their traditional Thanksgiving festivities, according to an Alliance Data Retail Services survey: 49

Percentage of respondents who waited until after the pumpkin pie had been polished off -- 5 p.m. or later -- to hit the stores: 36

Source: Alliance Data Retail Services.

Percentage of Americans who believe that relationships formed through online dating sites are just as likely to succeed as relationships formed elsewhere, according to a survey by YouGov: 36

Of those respondents who indicated that they have ever used online dating sites or apps, percentage who have felt that someone they saw on an online dating site or app was misrepresenting themselves: 44

Source: YouGov.

Percentage of people worldwide who say that vacations make them feel happier, better rested, closer to their family, less stressed and more relaxed, according to the results of the 2014 Vacation Deprivation study, an annual study of vacation habits among employed adults across 24 countries in Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and South America by Expedia: 80 to 90

Percentage of Americans who feel "very" or "somewhat" vacation deprived: 54

Source: Expedia.

Among 2014 college graduates currently working, percentage who said their job is related to their college major: 51

Percentage of the grads who say "making a lot of money" is more important in their job than "making a difference" who are in a full-time position, compared to 28 percent of those who think the reverse: 51

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Based on bookings, ranks of Cancun, Rome, London and Paris on the list of international destinations chosen by ASTA's (American Society of Travel Agents) 2014 Hot Spots for Winter survey: 1, 2, 3, 4

When asked about the top country/region destinations, ranks of Mexico, Italy and the Caribbean on the list of hot spots: 1, 2, 3

Source: American Society of Travel Agents.

Idle Thought

"There is only one way to achieve happiness on this terrestrial ball, and that is to have either a clear conscience or none at all." -- Ogden Nash

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

Percentage of U.S. public school teachers who react positively to the primary goal of the Common Core -- to have all states use the same set of academic standards for reading, writing and math in grades K-12, according to a Gallup survey: 76

Percentage who react positively to using computerized tests to measure students' performance and progress: 27

Percentage who react positively to linking those test scores to teacher evaluations: 9

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of frequent fliers (four flights a year or more) who would be very likely to choose price over comfort, according to an Omnibus Research survey: 21

Of those Americans who have flown, percentage who say that lack of space is one of the things they dislike about flying: 50

Percentage who often or always check sites like SeatGuru or Seatplans.com for additional information about seating layout and sizing: 20

Source: YouGov.

Percentage of Americans who believe their personal data is not secure, according to a survey from PKWARE: 61

Percentage of respondents who said theft of financial and banking data (including credit cards) caused them the most concern: 57

Percentage who cited Social Security numbers as the leading data at risk: 55

Source: PKWARE.

Percentage of Americans who estimate they could entertain only up to four guests with their current dinnerware, according to a survey conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of Corelle: 29

Percentage who are embarrassed to invite new friends over to their home for dinner with their current dinnerware set: 50

Source: Wakefield Research.

Percentage of U.S. adults who made charitable donations of money within the past two to three years, according to a Harris poll: 66

Percentage who gave used clothing: 73

Percentage who gave food: 53

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of Internet users who say that they have personally used an online dating site such as Match.com, eHarmony or OK Cupid, according to a national survey by the Pew Research Center's Internet Project: 11 (figure also represents 9 percent of the entire adult population)

Percentage of cellphone app users who say that they have used a dating app on their cellphone: 7 (figure also represents 3 percent of the entire adult population)

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

Percentage of Americans who expected to take a trip this holiday season, according to the 2013/2014 AAA year-end forecast: 29.7

Projected number of Americans who will journey 50 miles or more from home during the year-end holiday season: 94.5 million

Percentage of travelers or 85.8 million who are expected to travel by automobile: 91

Source: American Automobile Association.

Rank of the United States among 14 nations queried with a "perceptions vs. facts" test about knowledge of social-demographic aspects in a test-taker's own country, according to an Ipsos global survey highlighting public ignorance about the makeup of their own populations: 13

Americans' guesstimate of the percentage of the U.S. population that is over 65: 35.9 percent

Actual percentage over 65: 14 percent

Americans' guesstimate of the percentage of the country who identify themselves as Christian: 55.7

Actual percentage identifying as Christian: 78

Source: Ipsos Mori.

Percentage of teenagers aged 11 to 16 years old who say they regret posting something online, according to Digital Diaries research: 28

Percentage who have had to ask someone to remove content posted online about them: 32

Source: Digital Diaries.

Percentage of American adults (about 140 million) who could be recommended for behavioral weight-loss treatment, according to the Obesity Society: 65

Source: The Obesity Society.

Idle Thought

"It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends." -- J.K. Rowling, author

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

Year that November 11, Armistice Day, was commemorated for the first time: 1919

Year that the United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I and declared that the anniversary of the armistice should be commemorated with prayer and thanksgiving: 1926

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Ranks of New York City's Penn Plaza/Garment District ($4,440 average per month), New York City's DUMBO neighborhood, or Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass, ($4,023), and San Francisco's Yerba Buena ($3,643) on the Apartments.com list of the most expensive neighborhoods for one-bedroom renters in 2014: 1, 2, 3

Source: Apartments.com.

Percentage of companies that admit to not keeping promises made to customers, according to findings of a global survey conducted by Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) and American Management Association: 33

Number of times more likely that high-performing organizations such as Starbucks, Pizza Hut, 3M Corp. and Colliers International are to hire for customer focus: 3

Source: American Management Association.

Percentage more productive overall that employees who work in environments with natural elements (such as greenery and sunlight) are than workers deprived of natural elements, according to The Human Spaces Report, commissioned by Interface, and led by psychologist and professor Sir Cary Cooper: 8

Percentage higher their estimated level of well-being: 13

Source: Interface.

With excuses ranging from "needing the day to fix some botched plastic surgery" to "saying they accidentally got on a plane," percentage of American workers who have called in to work sick when they were feeling well, according to a CareerBuilder survey: 28

When asked for a reason, percentage of these workers who said they just didn't feel like going in to work: 30

Percentage who said they wanted the day to relax: 29

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of Americans who say marijuana should be made legal, compared with 45 percent who want it to be illegal, according to Pew Research: 52

In 1969, when Gallup first asked the question, percentage who favored legalizing marijuana use: 12

Percentage of Americans who believe alcohol is more harmful to a person's health than marijuana: 69

Source: PEW Internet and American Life Project.

Projected percentage rise in holiday spending this year, according to Nielsen Wire: 2

Percentage of Americans who are already making purchases: 22

Percentage of women who say they've started shopping, dwarfing the 12 percent of men who are in the same camp: 27

Source: Nielsen Analytics.

Percentage of consumers who will order gifts online this Christmas with less than a week until the big day itself, according to the eCustomerServiceIndex results from eDigitalResearch and IMRG: 47

Source: eDigitalResearch.

In spite of the unprecedented Ebola outbreak, percentage of companies that expect the flu to impact their business more than Ebola in the coming months, according to a survey that included many of the Fortune 500 companies and was conducted by International SOS: 83

When companies were asked to identify the measures they have implemented in response to the Ebola outbreak, percentage who said they had communicated with employees on preventing Ebola: 30

Source: International SOS.

Percentage of U.S. newspapers that had at least one woman in their top three editing positions in 2013, according to the annual census from the American Society of News Editors (ASNE): 63

Source: ASNE.

Idle Thought

The man who is denied the opportunity of taking decisions of importance begins to regard as important the decisions he is allowed to take. -- C. Northcote Parkinson, author and historian (1909-1993)

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