now it's paying off

A little-known fact about me: I actually don't mind, and sometimes even enjoy, answering surveys. At one time I worked for a social science non-profit group that designed a lot of surveys, but it's actually not just my sympathy for the people whose job it is to design, administer, and analyze them -- I like the chance to make my opinions known. Lately I've answered a couple of market research type surveys on the phone. Of course, half the time I'm the last person they want answering their questions -- I don't watch much TV, and we don't even have cable, so I rarely know what they're asking me ("which automobile advertisements have you seen in the past 7 days").

But now it's paying off. I've been asked to participate in a study of magazine reading: they're going to send me a copy of People and then call and ask me some questions about it. And pay me $35. Whoo-hoo! I'd read a junky magazine for free if it was in front of me. And, for what I figure will be an hour's time (reading the mag and answering 10 mins of questions) I'll get paid more than double what my salary comes out to in hourly terms. (Don't do that math unless you want to be depressed.)