I was reading my own blog, including the header photo that I recently updated. It says, “BHD’s Musings: the life and times of Booted Harleydude, your average booted biker in the ‘burbs.”

Well, I asked myself, “how ‘average’ am I?”

So I googled, “what is an average person like in the United States” and it pointed me to a number of recent articles that quote a national survey by a reputable organization. So here is what it said, and here is how I relate to these “averages”:

* The average American is a woman. 50.8 percent of Americans are women. Ummm… no. I’m a guy.

* The average American is white and not Hispanic. Yep, that’s me. However, I speak Spanish. Does that count?

* Average age is 52. nope… older.

* Average education is a bachelors degree. Nope again… doctorate

* Average field of work is “education and health services.” No… but I started in the field of education. I work in a different field these days.

* Average weekly income is $889.62. I won’t reveal my weekly income on a public blog, but let’s say that at my age and stage of career, I am at an above-average level.

* Average location to live: in a city.
I strongly dislike urban environments. Gimme my lawn, trees, and space! I don’t care if I have to drive to get groceries, and since we never eat out, being close to restaurants or nightlife does not matter (to us.)

* Average politics: politically independent who tends to vote Democratic, but disapproves of of the president’s performance. Yes, I concur and fit this “average.” (The word “disapproves” is putting it mildly).

* Average commute: 26.1-minute commute. Surprisingly, this is fairly accurate. My average commute is 25 minutes (20 in the morning and 30 in the afternoon when traffic is heavier.)

* Average life: married and lives with a spouse. Yes, again, I fit this “average.”

* Average living arrangement: lives in a house that she/he owns. Yes, we own our house, free-and-clear.

* Average kind of house: It was probably built in the late 1970s and is about 1,700 square feet.
We are above average — I (personally) built the house we live in in the late 90s and it is a bit larger. Not a mansion, but let’s call it “roomy for two.”

* Average religion: evangelical Baptist. About the most non-average thing about me. While I am a spiritual person, I do not participate with organized religion.

Summary/Total

How did I do?

* 2 “above average”

* 5 “average”

* 6 “not average/not me”

I am not really average-average, but when you average it out, I am about “average-ish”, more-or-less and within the standard deviation.

Too bad the national survey didn’t ask about footwear. I definitely would not be average about that!

Life is short: enjoy your average married life quietly booted in the ‘burbs.