No Excuses To Stick To Your Habits By Mark Crabtree

3. Mark Owen’s memoir No Easy Day is a first-person account of a Navy Seal who witnessed the take down of Osama bin Laden. Owen describes the journey of becoming a SEAL and the countless missions of which he was a part. He illustrates the work of the United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group, known as SEAL Team Six. The readers are taken along with the team right into the line of fire. They hear first time accounts of the rescue of Captain Richard Phillips in the Indian Ocean in 2009, stories of street attacks in Iraq and, primarily, the killing of Osama bin Laden in 2011. He describes the process of becoming a soldier for SEAL Team Six and numerous hours spent to prove his readiness. As Owen told CBS’s Scott Pelley on 60

After reading all of the paragraphs on what people believe, my favorite is “There Is No Such Thing as Too Much Barbecue” by Jason Sheehan. In his essay, he compares life to eating barbecue and he does a good job of doing so. My favorite line that he says is “I believe that if you don’t get sauce under your nails when you’re eating, you’re doing it wrong” because getting sauce under our nails stands for experiencing life. If we are not getting our hands dirty than we are doing it wrong. If we are not experiencing life and enjoying it, we are living life wrong and not getting anything out of it. This is so true because so many people do not want to go out, have fun, and live life. He also mentions that Mama knows what she is doing when

In Robert Cormier’s novel, We All Fall Down, is a young-adult thriller that explores the evil side of humanity through a number of corrupt characters. Cormier, to a large extent, accurately depicts manipulative and dishonest behaviour whilst also showing the evil lurking within the prominent characters of Harry Flowers, Buddy Walker and Mickey Stallings who showcase the dark side of humanity. Cormier explores this through Harry Flower’s manipulative actions that result in the suffering of others. Additionally, the constant dishonest behaviour is shown predominantly through the main protagonist of Buddy Walker, who deceives the one he loves. Cormier continues to depict the evil lurking in society through the theme of appearance

I recently read an excerpt from an article by Brett Martin, called “Good Food Everywhere”. It is a short, yet funny piece written about Martin’s journey finding amazing food in different and random places. Making a statement, he ends his article with, “How to square the seemingly unstoppable upward trajectory of our eating lives with the supposed downward trajectory of nearly everything else?” (Martin 263). This quote here is the most powerful part of the whole entire piece, as it is stating a much bigger idea than simply eating good food at places throughout a trip. I’m sure the meaning behind this question can be interpreted differently amongst others, but overall, I’m sure we can all get a gist of the big picture. Martin is clearly asking how can we manage to reconcile the impossible, yet positive course of good food in our lives, with the negative path of everything else. For “everything else”, that might be where some opinions differ.

Science fiction is a way for an author to express their concerns in the world while using fiction to bring up controversial ideas. In Unwind , Neal Shusterman is able to incorporate science fiction in a way to not only get his points across but to also make the reader think, and adjust the message to relate to one's own life. Unwind takes place in the future where it is an option for parents to choose to have their child unwound, meaning they would be taken from their family and taken apart. Their body parts would then be given to someone who is sick or injured. The reader is introduced to the main characters: three teenagers who have relatable backgrounds to teenage readers in order to help one connect and feel a part of the story. As readers start learning about these characters, Lev, Connor and Risa, new issues develop which create life or death situations that these adolescence have to deal with alone. While this story is science fictional the plot of these kids struggling to find who they are and what their purpose is, while their parents have given up on them, is something most readers can relate to in one way or another, whether it’s being unsure about the future, having family problems, or being told something can’t be done. In Unwind, the author, Neal Shusterman,

John Lubbock wrote, "Your character will be what you yourself choose to make it." This is a great opinion, but I also have an opinion of my own. I personally feel that experiences shape you into who you are. Every situation you go through impacts your life in many different ways. One small decision can change your life forever.

Joel Berg, author of All You Can Eat, explains the cry for which Americans have for the lack of understanding the problems and drastic result of families with money instabilities. The standard household is able to live freely and eat their meals at the table with one another, yet there are families that are unable to eat when they want and whatever they want. Though it may be hard to understand, if looking through the wrong perspective, Americans are able to fall into a slope of stability downfall. This meaning that their income becomes scarce. With their lack of salary, they are unable to provide a substantial meal for their families. As for this can lead to the obesity of children and parents due to the deficiency of money available.

I always knew people liked to consume more than what they need, but never really considered how it affects our environment. Until I read an article by Graham Hill called “Living with Less. A lot Less.” In this article, Hill argues that individuals obtain products one doesn’t need. Secondly, he mentions how purchasing these products won’t make you happy, but can do the exact opposite. Lastly, Hill argues how living with less merchandise can make us feel and live happier. As a result, I compared my life to his and realized he’s right having less might give us the opportunity to explore further.

When it comes to the topic of addiction, most of us will readily agree that it is a miserable trait to possess. An addiction is a physical and psychological state of being that if not treated correctly could result into harmful wrongdoing. In The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, he recounts a story in which a fatigued housewife named Angie Bachmann lost all of her family’s assets, amounting to a million dollars due to a gambling addiction. Every habit has three components: a cue or a trigger of an automatic behavior to start, a routine the behavior itself, and a reward which is how our brain learns to remember this pattern for the future. According to Duhigg, “you cannot extinguish a bad habit, you can only change it” (63). Duhigg

Internet addiction has become a huge problem in today’s society. In Greg Beato’s article, he discusses the growing phenomena of internet addiction disorder. The writer explains that more and more people are becoming addicted to the internet. For example, he tells of a teenager in Ohio, who shot and killed his mom and injured his dad because they took away his Xbox. He tells how it is stated that five to ten percent of the 52 million internet users were addicted. The author is telling us that the internet has become very addictive in our everyday society.

Writing is the most important form of communication. When deciding on a future job, communicating with people who have the occupation you desire is a great help. Communicating with members of such an elusive group such as the Air Force Pararescuemen (PJs) is no easy task. To communicate and learn more about my desired career, I found a great book written by a former Air Force Pararescuemen. Books written by former PJs are very inspirational to me. The book is tittled Never Quit by Jimmy Settle. Never Quit is an inspiring book that drives me to accomplish my goals and take on being an Air Force Pararescueman.

Experimenting with drugs is common among teenagers and adults, but when doing drugs, they focus mainly on the trip. Bryan Saunders took a different approach towards drugs. Being an artist, he decided to take 30 different drugs for 30 days, while creating a self portrait each day. Bryan Saunders calls this Under the Influence. His artwork varies from blobs of color to himself with a snake body. Saunders cause of the project, the actual project, and the aftermath all bring an interesting view into his life.

In our daily lives we encounter temptations and regardless of resisting or falling for them is due to the amount of willpower you posses. In the book The willpower Instinct by Kelly McGonigal, demonstrates how stress can affect our daily lives by causing us to act irrationally by listening to our temptations however through, her teaching of self-control, motivation, and the beneficial aspect of controlling your willpower can lead to a successful and healthy human being. Facing these temptations can be difficult when dealt with, but through the willpower experiments the cause and effects of temptations can be learned from. One willpower challenge I currently have is my poor habit of spending money due to the temptations that occurs when I’m mostly with my social peers, but through gaining self-control, a better sense of self-awareness, and motivation progresses me through this challenge.

Throughout the course of our lives, we often question our personal identity. It is done in multiple ways whether it is at school as an art project, at our community at a social gathering, or at home as a house chore. In fact, our personal identity contains a multitude of characteristics which appear and change in certain circumstances. In other words, the concept of ‘habitus’, as told by Bourdieu, offers a better understanding of an individual’s personality structure. Thus, in Reay’s article, “It’s all becoming a habitus’: beyond the habitual use of habitus in educational research”, she distributes the concept of ‘habitus’ into four theories. Like the author, I will reflect upon my understanding as well as applying it to an educational setting.

While the whole point of the gym is to better oneself in order to have an active body and mind, many people are deterred because they do not