The underwear indicator isn’t the only offbeat economic statistic getting attention these days. Kiplinger.com has come up with 10 of them, from sales of alligator hides to the number of mosquito breeding spots in Arizona.

Some of the stats seem silly and self-serving, like Match.com’s assertion that online dating is up because “people are looking for someone with whom they can forget about money troubles.” Others have more logic behind them. Those Arizona  mosquitoes are thriving because no one’s maintaining the swimming pools at houses that are in foreclosure. And if you want to get a read on how your neighborhood is doing, drop by the local dry-cleaning shop:

The International Drycleaning and Laundry Institute is hearing gripes from many of its 5,000 members. Because of the poor economy, customers are visiting less frequently and leaving clothes longer. Customers who once came weekly now visit every two weeks, monthly customers visit bimonthly, and some people delay their pickups even longer to avoid the bill. This has been a staple indicator of hard times in the past.