Living Today: Issues of modern living

AMERICANS CHANGED AFTER SEPT. 11

The Sept. 11 terrorists attacks have dramatically changed attitudes Americans have about themselves, their country and war, says Bruce Jackson, professor of American culture at the University at Buffalo.

Nearly one year after the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, there still is a palpable fear among Americans that is "small and fleeting at times, large and overwhelming at other times," Jackson says.

A sudden bump in a flight produces far more concern than it did a year ago. People wonder what the flight attendants are doing, if they really are calm or are they faking it?

If there is one positive aspect to the terrorism, Jackson says, it is that many Americans have opened their eyes and minds to the world beyond their borders.

MEN PLAN TO SPEND MORE

Blue Flame Marketing and Advertising, a lifestyle marketing company led by rapper Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, says a national survey of 847 urban American finds men plan to spend more shopping this fall than women.

Contrary to retail America's perceptions of women spending more than men shopping, male respondents estimate they will spend $609 on clothes this fall for themselves and their family. Women estimate $545. Thirty percent say they will spend more, 17 percent less and 53 percent say they plan to spend the same.

The domestic urban market consists of 45 million consumers, wielding an estimated $890 billion in spending power, according to Combs.

REUNIONS BOOMING

Gone are the days when a family reunion automatically meant a one-day picnic. Now many families are seeking more elaborate gatherings including reunion vacations or cruises.

The burgeoning reunion industry generates more than a half-billion dollars a year, according to The Christian Science Monitor.

Not everyone can afford week-long gatherings but Americans are spending a fair amount in search of family closeness.

Edith Wagner, editor of Reunions magazine, says the median spending per person per reunion is $101 to $200. More than 30 percent of her readers spend more than $300 per reunion, and 9 percent spend more than $500.

Wagner explains interest in reunions rekindled in 1977 after the TV series "Roots" spurred a huge interest in genealogy.

ANYONE FOR A NIGHT OF KNITTING?

The curtains are drawn, the halogen lights are turned down low. A compact disc is playing. A few faxes arrive. The computer printer whips out some recipes. Later, there's the prospect of watching a movie on the DVD player.

The microwave pings to announce the chicken tikka is ready. Maybe there'll be time to sneak in a few rounds of Premiership Manager on the PlayStation before bed.

According to the British government, this is just the sort of evening that is leading to global warming -- sending electricity use soaring by 50 percent between 1970 and 2000.

The London Independent reports domestic electrical goods sitting on electrical standby, such as televisions and computers that never really shut down, cost British consumers more than $600 million a year.