We Canadians often take aim at our friends to the south of us and poke fun at our differences. The numbers below will give you even more insight into the differences between Canadians and Americans, some of them are very enlightening, Enjoy! MarkSPOTLIGHT ON BEING AMERICAN
Here are some facts about Americans that should prove that Canadians are very similar. First, some money-related statistics.
- 3 out of 4 of us store our bills in our wallets in rigid order with singles leading up to higher denominations.
- How far would you go for $10 million? 25% would abandon their friends, family, and church. 7% would murder.
- 53% prefer ATM machines over tellers.
- 56% of women do the bills in a marriage.
- 2 out of 3 of us wouldn't give up their spouse even for a night for a million U.S. dollars.
- The biggest cause of matrimonial fighting is money.
- 35% give to charity at least once a month.
And some non-monetary statistics:
- 21% of Americans don't make their bed daily. 5% of Americans never do.
- Men do 29% of laundry each week.
- Only 7% of women trust their husbands to do laundry correctly.
- 40% of women have hurled footwear at a man.
- 13% of Americans admit to occasionally doing their offspring's homework.
- 91% of Americans lie regularly.
- 27% admit to cheating on a test or quiz.
- 29% admit they've intentionally stolen something from a store.
- 50% admit they regularly sneak food into movie theaters.
- 90% believe in divine retribution.
- 10% believe in the 10 Commandments.
- 82% believe in an afterlife.
- 45% believe in ghosts.
- 13% (mostly men) have spent a night in jail.
- 58% have called into work sick when they weren't.
- 10% switch tags in the store to pay less for an item.
- 69% eat the cake before the frosting.
- When nobody else is around, 47% drink straight from the carton.
- 85% will eat Spam this year.
- 70% drink orange juice daily.
- 22% skip lunch daily.
- 9% skip breakfast daily.
- 66% eat cereal regularly.
- 22% of all restaurant meals include french fries.
- 14% eat the watermelon seeds.
- Only 13% brush their teeth from side to side.
- 45% use mouthwash every day.
- 22% leave the glob of toothpaste in the sink.
- Nearly 1/3 of U.S. women color their hair.
- 9% of women and 8% of men have had cosmetic surgery.
- 53% of women will not leave the house without makeup on.
- 58% of women paint their nails regularly.
- 33% of women lie about their weight.
- 10% of us claim to have seen a ghost.
- 57% have had deja vu.
- 49% believe in ESP.
- 44% have broken a bone.
- 57% have had deja vu.
- Only 30% know their cholesterol level.
- 14% have attended a self-help meeting (coin club meetings don't count).
- 15% regularly go to a shrink.
- 78% would rather die quickly than live in a retirement home.
- 30% of us refuse to sit on a public toilet seat.
- 54% always wash their hands after using the toilet.
- 39% of us peek in our host's bathroom cabinet.
- 17% have been caught by the host.
- 29% of us ignore RSVP.
- 71% of us eavesdrop.
- Less than 10% are trilingual.
- 37% claim to know how to use all the features on their VCR.
- 40% of us have had music lessons.
- 44% reuse tinfoil.
- 57% save pretty gift paper to reuse.
- 66% of women and 59% of men have used a mix to cook and taken credit for doing it from scratch.
- 53% read their horoscopes regularly.
- 57% have had deja vu.
- 16% of us have forgotten our own wedding anniversary (mostly men).
- 90% of us depend on alarm clocks to wake us.
- 53% of us would take advice from Anne Landers.
- On average, Americans send 38 Christmas cards every year.
- 20% of women consider their parents to be their best friends.
- 2 out of 5 have married their first love.
- Only 4% asked the parents' approval for their bride's hand.
- 1 in 5 men proposed on his knees.
- 6% propose over the phone.
- 67% of us speed up at a yellow light.
- 44% of men tailgate to speed up the person in front of them.
- 25% drive after we've been drinking.
- 80% sing in the car.
- 12% of men never use their car blinkers.
- Only 30% of Americans can flare their nostrils.
- Snickers is the most popular candy.
- 45% of us consistently follow the speed limit.
So you see, we're not so different. Except maybe the last one, because everyone in Canada speeds. And Coffee Crisp is our most popular chocolate bar, which no doubt has something to do with our love for anything and everything coffee.
I have to give credit where credit is due, these numerical funnies come from my friend John R. and he may be reached for more humour at coinman@look.ca.Have a nice day,Mark
