1. McDonald’s Recruits #AARP Members
For the first time in nearly two decades, the number of available jobs has surpassed the number of available workers, therefore, McDonald’s, like many others, is facing a labor shortage. 
And instead of hiring young whippersnappers, McDonald’s is posting jobs from cashiers to shift managers to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). The 65+ crowd is actually becoming the fastest-growing segment of the workforce. The hardest jobs to fill are no longer engineers, but blue-collar workers, those with less skill sets. “[Teenagers are] in school, or aren’t always excited about working that 5 a.m. shift,” McDonald’s chief people officer told USA Today. “So we believe matching this mature workforce with the breakfast and lunch shift… is really important.” How many jobs do they plan to fill? They are recruiting for 250K summer jobs, so take your grandparents down to the local Mickey D’s today.
(Source: The Hustle, Vox)
2. I’m on a Boat…
… Everybody look at me cause I’m sailin’ on a boat.
The newest rental hotspot in big cities is a houseboat. Say, what? Last year, rental prices hit a record high, averaging $1,405 per month, with 88% of the 250 largest cities seeing a rental increase. However, that’s not stopping city-dwellers who are struggling to afford the high rise life from leaving. Instead, they’re finding more creative ways to afford the cost of living. In cities like San Francisco, Chicago, and New York City, you can buy a boat off of a marina that is still close to the city’s hustle and bustle. One urban mariner in the Bronx bought a sailboat for $10K and pays an average $233/month to maintain the boat, compared to an average $3K/month to live in an NYC apartment. The downfall? Marinas may offer cool amenities like fire pits, movie screenings and a relaxing atmosphere, but the winter weather can be rough and these houseboats slowly depreciate in value, potentially making these investments not worth it in the long-term.
(Source: The Hustle, NY Times)
3. Highest-Grossest Film of the Year
It may come as no surprise that Avengers: Endgame has already scored the highest-grossing film of the year in at least 54 countries. A box office record was broken with the movie’s astronomical popularity, bringing in $1.2B worldwide. “It shows the power of theaters — the ability, even in a hyper-fragmented culture, to deliver that wildly big communal experience,” Megan Colligan, president of Imax Filmed Entertainment, said. On Saturday, 2.3M people showed up to AMC cinemas and the multiplex operator added 5K last-minute showtimes in the U.S. “Young moviegoers will remember where they were when they saw Endgame, who they saw it with and what it felt like,” John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theater Owners, wrote in an email. “That will pay off for years to come in the same way that moviegoers who grew up in the ’70s and ’80s still talk about the impact that Star Wars had on them.” What does this all mean? Even though we live in a Jetson’s era, we all still crave a Flintstone’s experience.
(Source: NY Times)
