As the time winds down to Christmas, consider these interesting bits of trivia about the holiday.
* Approximately $2,255,750,000 is generated by photographs with Santa in shopping malls
* Santa must visit about 842,000,000 houses on Christmas Eve. To accomplish this, he must travel 4,796,250 mph!
* Four percent of Americans believe Santa drives a sports car in the off-season. Twenty-five percent think the jolly old man drives an SUV.
* If you were to get every present in "The Twelve Days of Christmas" you would receive 364 gifts.
How much would these gifts cost? U.S. bank PNC said "2012's Christmas Price Index was up 4.8 percent on the year before, taking the total cost of all the gift items to $25,431.18. Purchasing the items each day during the 12-day festival, as the carol suggests, takes the total cost to an all-time high of $107,300."
* Still shopping? Twenty percent of Americans finish off their Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve.
* No children to enjoy a photo op with Santa? Twenty-seven percent of pet owners have their dog or cat pose with Santa for a picture.
* Twenty-eight percent of Americans "regift."
* Artificial trees are the most popular tree to display during the holiday season.
* Is a Barbie doll on your shopping list? Each minute around the world, 180 Barbie dolls are sold.
* Packages all opened? Approximately 4 million tons of trash is generated annually from gift wrap and shopping bags.
I found this list at work posted I'll not say where! and it references the website www.uberreview.com2006/12/ten-christmas-facts-that-you-didnt-know.
Have a Merry Christmas!
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Sue Sampson is a longtime columnist for The Parkersburg News & Sentinel.
