You’d think all the attention paid to the March Madness office pool would take away from getting things done. Not really. According to more than 1,000 managers asked about the effect of March Madness on office productivity, just 8 percent said it disrupted how much work got done. Twice as many said the effect on productivity was a positive one, while the vast majority of managers surveyed — 75 percent — said the games had no effect on productivity or morale.

Source: OfficeTeam, 3/18/13

Trying to clean up the junk in your house? According to professional organizers, if it’s broken, outdated, lost its mate, ugly, useless, dead or moldy, then it’s junk and you should toss or recycle it.
Source: Clutter’s Last Stand, by Don Aslett

You’ve no doubt heard that blondes have more fun. Well, it turns out they also have more in their paychecks. A study from the Queensland University of Technology studied 13,000 Caucasian women and found blondes earn more than 7 percent more than female employees with any other hair color. The study said the pay bump is equivalent to the boost an employee would generally see from one entire year of additional education. As a bonus, the study also found blonde women marry men who earn an average of 6 percent more than husbands of women with other hair colors.

Source: Salary.com, 3/14/13

Here’s another reason to drink in moderation: Studies show that for every beer or mixed drink you chug, your body converts approximately half an ounce of that booze directly to fat.

Source: Men’s Fitness, 3/5/13

Did you know there’s such a thing as doggie discrimination? Among those in animal rescue circles, the phenomenon is known as “black dog syndrome.” According to animal shelter workers, animals with black coats can be somewhat harder to adopt out — or to even get noticed. It’s mostly an unconscious thing, say the experts, which may explain why black cats have the same problems finding a home. People who are aware of superstitions about black cats may also be unconsciously harboring superstitions about black dogs.
Source: MSNBC Health, 3/5/13

Different occupations tend to eat lunch at different times. According to restaurant industry analysts, the lunch hour is dictated by industry. Wall Street refuels at 12:30, Hollywood at 1:00, and new media at 1:30 or later. The early birds are those answering to the government or the court system. It seems government workers are the only ones who eat exactly at noon.

Source: Best Life, 3/5/13

Is your wife happy with how your married sex life is going? You may be fooling yourself. A new survey finds that while 79 percent of men think their wives are happy or very happy with their sex lives, only 60 percent of women say they actually are.   

Source: iVillage, 3/5/13

What do men look for in a mate? Men are more likely to choose women who display signs of youth and beauty — the first time that they marry, men around the world tend to marry women who are three years younger than themselves. Men are also attracted to women who “need” them. Men want to be helpful. What do women look for in a mate? Women are attracted to partners with money, status, and ambition — one study found that American women seek partners who offered financial security twice as frequently as men do. If men look for “sex objects,” then women look for “success objects.”

Source: Chemistry.com, 3/5/13