Date of the probable first flight of Santa's sleigh, a versatile, all-weather, multipurpose, vertical short-take-off-and-landing vehicle capable of traveling vast distances without refueling and deployed, as far as we know, only on Christmas Eve (and briefly for a test flight about a month before Christmas), according to NORAD: Dec. 24, 343 A.D.

Home base: North Pole

Length of the sleigh, built by K. Kringle & Elves Inc.: 75 cc (candy canes)/150 lp (lollipops)

Weight at takeoff: 75,000 gd (gumdrops)

Propulsion: Nine (9) rp (reindeer power)

Max speed: Faster than starlight� Source: NORAD.

Period during which the Christmas tree was introduced in the United States by German settlers, rapidly growing from tabletop size to floor-to-ceiling: 1800s

Year that Christmas trees began to be sold commercially in the United States: 1850

Year Franklin Pierce is credited with bringing the first Christmas tree to the White House: 1853

Estimated year that Sears, Roebuck & Co. began offering the first artificial Christmas trees -- 33 limbs for 50 cents and 55 limbs for $1: 1883

Year the first Christmas tree farm was started when W.V. McGalliard planted 25,000 Norway spruce on his farm in New Jersey: 1901

Source: History.com.

Estimated number of visitors who are drawn to the Christmas tree area around Rockefeller Center every day the tree is lit: 750,000

Number who visit on a non-Christmas tree day: 350,000

Source: Bloomberg.

Average number of minutes that parents across the U.S., U.K., France, Canada, Australia, Brazil and Mexico say they spend each night trying to get their children to bed, according to a study conducted on behalf of Netflix: 17.5

Percentage of parents who report that their children have come up with some creative stall tactics to try and delay bedtime: 61

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Year Barbie debuted at the annual Toy Fair in New York, according to research by Convergex: 1959

Since her birthday on March 9, 1959, estimated number of careers she has had: 150

Rank of the 1992 Totally Hair Barbie, which wore hair down to its feet, according to Mattel's website on the list of the best-selling Barbie of all time: 1

Source: Convergex.

Percentage of people who spend two to six hours preparing their holiday meal, according to a survey by Omaha Steaks: 56

Percentage of people who spend more than six hours: 29

Source: Omaha Steaks.

Percentage of adults who admit they have plugged too many Christmas lights into one outlet, according to a study by insuranceQuotes.com and Allstate Insurance: 50

Percentage who have let a real Christmas tree go without water for more than three days: 29

Source: insuranceQuotes.com.

Percentage of consumers who typically wait until the week of Christmas to do the majority of their holiday shopping, according to RetailMeNot: 30

Percentage of Americans who have bought last-minute gifts during the holidays: 91

Source: RetailMeNot.com.

Percentage of parents of children 9 or under who are likely to make toy purchases, more than those who are parents of tweens (ages 10 to 12) or full-blown teenagers (ages 13 to 17): 92

Ranks of children's books, arts and crafts supplies, dolls and console video games as the most-purchased gifts: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: The Harris Poll.

Percentage of Americans who plan to holiday tip this year, according to a survey from Care.com: 70

Percentage who prioritize tips for baby sitters, nannies and day care workers: 60

Percentage who tip those who regularly interact with their children, such as coaches, tutors, teachers, etc.: 42

Percentage who tip personal care contacts, such as hairstylists, manicurists, personal trainers, etc.: 47

Source: Care.com.

Idle Thought

"A thing of beauty is a joy forever: its loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness." -- John Keats

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

581-7323

In 2015, percentage increase in the price index of the the holiday classic "The Twelve Days of Christmas," according to PNC Wealth Management: 0.6

Total cost to a very thoughtful true love who buys every item, from a single partridge to 12 drummers drumming, from each verse (that's 364 separate pieces of Christmas joy): $155,407.00

Cost of each individual partridge in a pear tree: $215.00

Cost of five golden rings: $750.00

Cost of seven swans a-swimming: $13,125.00

Source: PNC Wealth Management.

Percentage of pet "parents" who say they plan on buying presents for their pets this holiday, according to a Petco survey: 82

Percentage who plan on buying special treats for their pets: 87

Source: Petco.

When dining with family only, percentage of Americans who say they have a no cellphone policy at the table, according to findings from the Toluna Quicksurveys annual Naughty and Nice behaviors survey: 51

Percentage who say they have blocked family or a friend on social media without them knowing: 36

Source: Toluna QuickSurveys.

Percentage of workers who don't plan to take any paid days off around the holidays, according to a survey by Spherion survey: 19

Of those workers who have paid time off, percentage who will lose at least two paid days off because they are unable to take them before the end of the year: 30

Percentage who will lose more than five days: 6

Source: Spherion.

Rank of crowds and long lines (61 percent) on the list of the biggest holiday dreads, according to a Consumer Reports poll: 1

Ranks of bad traffic, aggressive or thoughtless driving in store parking lots, and gaining weight on the list: 2, 3, 4

Source: Consumer Reports.

Among those who typically use credit cards for any of their holiday spending, percentage who say they pay it off either right away or within a month, according to a Harris poll: 62

Percentage who say they pay it off within three months: 15

Percentage who say six months: 8

Percentage who say it takes them longer than six months to pay off the debt: 8

Source: The Harris Poll.

Percentage of neckties sold annually that are Christmas gifts, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 20

Estimated value of the necktie-making business in the United States per year: $390 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who are concerned about getting sick from family/friends or other travelers during the holiday travel season, yet continue to put others at risk by engaging in regular holiday activities while sick, according to a survey conducted on behalf of Merck Manuals: 28

Percentage who admit that they do not take any extra precautions to stay healthy between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day: 25

Source: Merck Manuals.

Number of Americans who have had packages stolen from their doorsteps before they could open them, according to a report by insuranceQuotes.com: 23 million

Number who have had a guest injured in their home during the holidays: 7 million

Number who have had fires caused by Christmas trees and other decorations: 2 million

Source: insuranceQuotes.com.

Percentage of all annual retail sales that take place during the holiday period, according to the National Retail Federation: 19.2

Source: LexisNexis.

Idle Thought

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." -- Mark Twain

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

Year that a day was set aside to provide people with the opportunity to give back to their communities when New York City's 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation started Giving Tuesday to create a global day of giving, according to The Harris Poll: 2012

Held the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday -- three years after its creation, percentage of Americans who say they've never heard of it: 87

After hearing about it, percentage of Americans who say this day represents what the holiday season should be about: 75

Source: The Harris Poll.

Of American households in the top 10 percent of family income earners (more than $120,000 per year), ranks of jewelry/watches, travel/vacation, fashion and personal electronics as their top luxury gifts this holiday season, according to a survey by YouGov and Time Inc.: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: YouGov.

Percentage of professionals who say they feel guilty about online shopping during work hours, according to a survey by Robert Half Technology: 30

Percentage who believe their co-workers are not pulling their weight when they shop on company time: 28

Percentage who say they have been caught by the boss while shopping online: 24

Source: Robert Half.

Ranks of Mexico, China and India as the largest sources of immigrants to the United States between 1965 and 2015, according to Pew Hispanic Center: 1, 2, 3

Number of times more immigrants that there were from Mexico than from China and India combined during that period: 2.8

Source: Pew Hispanic Center.

Estimated value of shipments of candles by U.S. manufacturers, many of which are lit during Diwali, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa celebrations: $1.68 billion

Number of pieces of mail the U.S. Postal Service expects to deliver between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve -- with the busiest mailing day set for Dec. 16, and Dec. 18 as the busiest delivery day: 15 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

In today's flat organizational structures, average number of extra years that employees spend at each job level than they did in 2010, according to CEB: 3

Percentage of employees who have become dissatisfied with future career opportunities caused by this stalled progression: 70

Source: CEB.

Of Americans who bake cookies, percentage who bake cookies during the holidays, according to a survey commissioned by Fleischmann's Yeast and Karo Syrup brands: 93

Percentage who bake three or more batches: 61

Source: MSL Group.

Percentage of American teens aged 13 to 17 who have ever dated, according to Pew Internet and American Life project: 35

Percentage of teens who have dated who met a romantic partner online: 24

Percentage of teens who started a friendship online: 57

Source: Pew Internet and American Life Project.

Percentage of people who say they trust ads on social media, according to a Nielsen Global survey: 46

Percentage of people who say they trust emails that they signed up for: 56

Percentage of people who say they trust branded websites: 70

Percentage who say they trust the opinions of friends and family: 83

Source: Nielsen Media Research.

Percentage of American companies that have hired a veteran in the last year, according to CareerBuilder.com: 47

Percentage of veterans who say they were underemployed or were in a low-paying job: 31

Percentage who were taking advantage of a tuition credit granted under the G.I. Bill: 29

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Idle Thought

"You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lips." -- Oliver Goldsmith, writer and physician

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