Percentage of Amazon sellers who raised their prices this holiday season due to China tariffs, according to a survey by Jungle Scout: 42

Percentage of Amazon sellers who will offer deals and discounts during the holiday season: 53

Source: Jungle Scout.

Of the millions of Americans who intend to travel home, percentage who will experience stress over having to stay with family or friends, typically due to crowding (hello, basement air mattress) and lack of privacy (how many cousins can share one bathroom?), according to a survey by Motel 6: 67

Percentage who say cost savings is a key factor in staying with their family over the holidays: 68

Percentage who would appreciate receiving a gift of a motel or hotel stay from their family: 82

Percentage who stated they would get along better with their family during the holidays if they didn't have to stay in the same place: 48

Source: Motel 6.

Estimated number of people who visit hospital emergency rooms each November and December from holiday-related decorating accidents, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission: 14,700

Ranks of falls, lacerations and back strains on the list of the most frequent holiday decorating incidents: 1, 2, 3

Estimated number of fires sparked by dried Christmas trees each year: 100

Estimated number of fires caused by candles during the holiday season: 1,100

Estimated number of deaths that result from these fires annually, along with 150 injuries and $50 million in property damage: 10

Source: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day last year, estimated number of packages the U.S. Postal Service delivered -- in addition to 15 billion pieces of mail -- including gifts for faraway loved ones, heartfelt cards, letters to Santa and those dreaded credit card statements: 850 million

Source: U.S. Postal Service.

Thinking of the upcoming holiday season, percentage of Americans who say they would consider giving homemade gifts, according to a survey by bankrate.com: 34

Percentage who would be willing to skip gift-giving altogether: 13

Source: Bankrate Inc.

When asked what one food or dish they most look forward to eating each year during this holiday season, percentage who cited turkey, according to the Harris Poll: 32

Ranks of stuffing, ham, pie and sweet potatoes/yams on the list: 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: The Harris Poll.

Percentage of Americans who celebrate Christmas, according to Pew Research: 90

Percentage of U.S. adults who say they celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday, including 46% who see it as more of a religious holiday than a cultural holiday and 9% who celebrate Christmas as both a religious and a cultural occasion: 55

Percentage of those people who celebrate who also attend church on Christmas: 51

Source: PEW Internet and American Life Project.

Ranks of Treasure X Aliens Dissection Kit, Harry Potter Invisibility Cloak, Blume Doll, Fur Real Cubby Interactive Plush Toy, Klutz Lego -- Make Your Own Movie Kit and Nintendo Switch on the list of must-have toys for Christmas 2019, according to research by The Spruce: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Source: The Spruce.

Number of years that Butterball has staffed its Turkey Talk-Line with experts who are happy to answer all turkey-related questions throughout the holidays, according to research by Genesys: 35 plus

Source: Genesys.

Rank of Bethlehem, West Bank on the Lonely Planet's 1,000 Ultimate Experiences list of the best places in the world to experience the Yuletide spirit: 1

Ranks of Santa Claus Village, Finland; New York City; Bondi Beach, Australia; and Midnight Mass at the Vatican on the list: 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: The Lonely Planet.

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.

Length of the sleigh, built by Kringle and Elves Inc. and home based at the North Pole: 75 cc (candy canes)/150 lps (lollipops)

Weight at takeoff: 75,000 gd (gumdrops)

Propulsion: Nine (9) rp (reindeer power)

Armament: Antlers (purely defensive)

Climbing speed: One "T" (Twinkle of an eye)

Max speed: Faster than starlight

Source: NORAD. Stats supplied annually.

Idle Thought

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us. And the world will live as one." -- John Lennon

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

Percentage of parents with kids under 18 who say they are worried about disappointing their kids this holiday season, according to a survey by Lending Tree: 69

Percentage of millennials who feel pressured to purchase gifts: 71

Percentage who lose sleep over holiday spending worries: 50

Source: Lending Tree.

Percentage of people who said the holiday party is very important to office morale and company success, according to a BizBash and Seamless survey: 72

Percentage who reported better office friendships as a result of past holiday parties: 75

Percentage who reported an improved office culture: 71

Source: BizBash.

Percentage of U.S. adults who use the services of a mail carrier who never tip them at the end of the year, according to a CreditCards.com report: 60

Percentage who never tip their trash/recycling collector: 70

Percentage who never tip their childcare provider or teacher: 47 for each

Source: Bankrate.com.

No matter how miserable or difficult you consider your journey to work to be, there's one man whose commute is as ambitious as it is crucial to the happiness of others -- Santa Claus. To wit: Number of children he must visit in a matter of hours, according to the Ministry of Fun: 2.1 billion

Number of stops he must make (assuming the global average of 2.5 children per household applies): 842 million

Time spent at each stop (not enough to enjoy a nice glass of sherry): 1 millisecond

Source: Ministry of Fun.

Percentage of workers who exchange presents during the holiday season, according to a FitSmallBusiness.com survey: 58

Rank of alcohol on the list of Secret Santa gifts: 1

Percentage of respondents who believe that a funny item is the best Secret Santa gift: 47

Source: Fit Small Business.

Century that artificial Christmas trees -- made using goose feathers that were dyed green and attached to wire branches -- were developed in Germany, according to the University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners: 19th

Year the U.S.-based Addis Brush Company created the first artificial Christmas tree made from brush bristles, using the same machinery that it used to manufacture toilet brushes, but they were dyed green: 1930

Source: University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners.

Percentage of senior managers who said their company offers year-end bonuses, according to research conducted by global staffing firm Robert Half: 76

Percentage of organizations that plan to increase their bonuses: 48

Percentage that plan to keep them the same: 48

Rank of putting it toward long-term savings, a vacation in the new year, holiday shopping and paying off debt on the list of ways workers plan to use their bonuses: 1, 2, 3 (tie)

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

Percentage increase in travel to Europe since 2018, according to a survey by Allianz Global Assistance: 25

Rank of London, Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Madrid and Barcelona on the list of Americans' preferred holiday destinations this year: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Source: Allianz Global Assistance USA.

Date Radio City Music Hall opened with a troupe known as the Roxyettes, according to Radio City Music Hall data: Dec. 27, 1932

Year they officially became the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes: 1934

Since the Christmas Spectacular's opening night, number of women who have shared in the legacy by performing as a Rockette: 3,000-plus

Number of people who have seen the Christmas Spectacular since the New York holiday tradition officially began: 75 million-plus

Source: Radio City Music Hall.

Number of people who will apply for a new credit card for holiday shopping, according to WalletHub: 42 million

Percentage of credit cards that have price protection, which can get cardholders a refund if there's a price drop after the holidays: 41

Source: WalletHub.

Idle Thought

"You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

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

Year that President Coolidge started the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on the White House lawn, according to PolitiFact.com and the National Christmas Tree Association: 1923

Year that the National Christmas Tree Association began giving a Christmas tree to the president and first family for display in the Blue Room: 1966

Source: University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners.

Percentage of Americans who would give up extraordinary things to eat pizza as much as they want without feeling guilty, according to a survey by Caulipower: 63

Percentage who would have a social media detox for one year in exchange for guiltless pizza consumption: 37

Percentage who would throw their smartphones away for one month: 17

Percentage who would give up sex for a year: 16

Source: Caulipower.

Percentage of retirees who say they always pay their credit card balances in full when due, compared to 39% of current workers, according to a study by T. Rowe Price: 72

Percentage who say they always stick to their monthly budget if they have one, compared to 26% of current workers: 52

Percentage who say they never have problems paying their bills on time, compared to 58% of workers: 89

Source: T. Rowe Price.

Amount that Americans who shopped at independent retailers and restaurants on Small Business Saturday (Nov. 30), according to the 2019 Small Business Saturday Consumer Insights Survey from American Express and the National Federation of Independent Business: $19.6 billion

Percentage of American adults who are aware of Small Business Saturday, which always falls two days after Thanksgiving: 70

Source: Genesys.

Percentage of families who committed to an unplugged vacation who had enjoyed themselves more, according to research from Alamo Rent A Car: 41

Percentage who had better conversations: 40

Percentage who felt more relaxed: 38

Percentage who felt closer as a family: 36

Source: Alamo Rent A Car.

Amount the average December holiday air traveler will spend, according to a CreditCards.com report: $1,033

Among those planning to stay in hotels or short-term rentals, average expected expense for the December holidays: $673

Percentage of millennials who will fly or stay in a hotel over the December holidays, versus 12% of those age 39 and older: 35

Source: CreditCards.com.

Globally, percentage of respondents who said they have tried a diet to lose weight, according to a Global Advisor survey by Ipsos: 51

Percentage who said they were content with their weight: 55

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of households that are "high spenders" -- spending more than $2,100 during the holidays -- accounting for 60% of total holiday spending, according to Deloitte: 20

Percentage of dollars spent on holiday travel, restaurants and hotels that are accounted for by high spenders: 70

Source: Deloitte.

Number of pieces of mail the U.S. Postal Service handles every day, according to a report from Clutch: 484.4 million

Number of packages handled each day by FedEx: 6.2 million

Number of packages and documents UPS handles daily: 20.7 million

Source: Clutch.

Estimated cash gifts children expect to receive this Christmas, according to the Kids' Allowance Report by Rooster Money: $58

Source: RoosterMoney.

Idle Thought

"Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world." -- Desmond Tutu

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