Men Men Men

Thanks to one of my co-workers at the fine news organization I work for, I was quite fascinated to see his breakdown on the following spending numbers for the month of November:

1. Seems like men will be very happy this X-Mas day while women are getting the short end of the stick.
   
2. Auto sales increased.
3. There was a huge jump in spending on electronics - major spikes in flat screen TV's and computers.
4. Jump in food spending - led by our favorite fast food joints.
5. Jump in spending on men's and boy's clothing - jr. and sr. metrosexuals, no doubt.
6. gain on spending on toys - not sure whether 12 year old boys or girls are more materialistic this year.
7. Jump in spending on brokerage commissions (male dominated profession).
   
8. And check this out - Wall St. folks (mostly men) will likely spend $17 BILLION DOLLARS in bonus fees to spend.

Boys will be boys...

Who influences our thinking?

An interesting ranking by Suntop Media lays out for us the 50 most influential thinkers in the world.

Top 50

Not surprisingly, the top two spots are held by the typical Ivy League bias and Mr. Billionaire Gates. Most of the other guys are unknown to me, though I was surprised to see the architect of the U.S.'s greatest growth period in the country's history sitting down at #35. "Mr. Greenspan, I know your resume is solid, and you've helped make many people extremely rich with your economic navigation, but you just don't have that special something that we're looking for..."

The most shocking ranking though, sitting right there at #12, HAS to be Scott Adams. Who is Scott Adams? Why, he's the author of the DILBERT comic strip! In this day and age, I guess that makes total sense. I think Scott says it best himself:

My first reaction was to feel sorry for the poor bastards who ranked 13 through 50. I imagine they would have felt pretty good about making the list until they were topped by the guy who wants to adopt a frozen embryo, name it Amy and keep it in the fridge.

Ah, the Dilbert Future...

You're gonna need a bigger boat

Now I have two reasons never to attempt a trans-Atlantic rowing trip:

12 Foot Shark Attacks Rowing Boat

The other reason, being, that I can't actually swim and don't know how to row...

Pleasure Reading

Well, my first semester of law school is officially done. I had three exams, all with varying degrees of difficulty. And now that I get a nice little break from the grind (of school; still gotta punch the clock at work) my interests turn to two MUST DO items:

1. Watch guilt free football - got an early start on this one on Saturday. Love the Saturday NFL.
   
2. Catch up on pleasure reading - I've got three books lined up -
1. Education of a Coach - David Halberstram
   
2. The Pursuit of God - A.W. Tozer
   
3. Now I can Die in Peace - Bill Simmons

In thinking about pleasure reading again, I came across this quote by Stephen King:

A friend of mine sold her first novel this fall. She said the good part was finally being allowed into the playground where the big kids play. The bad part, she said, was that her book was tentatively scheduled for publication in 2007. She asked me if I thought people would even be reading novels in 2007, with so many other entertainment options available. I had to laugh, because novels are still the best entertainment option. Even a hardcover is cheaper than two tickets to the local multiplex, especially once you throw in gas, parking, and babysitting. Also, a book lasts longer and there are no ads. Need more? No tiresome ratings system to keep you out if you're under 17, the special effects are always primo (because you make 'em up yourself), and although I read nearly 80 books this year, I never ran across the Olsen twins a single time.

True, True.