Every Waking Moment

Chris So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity and conservatism (qtd. in Krakauer 57). Abandoning the routine of waking up at the same time everyday to take a shower, grab a cup of joe and head into work is not an easy task. Chris McCandless had an education, money, and car and gave it all up to follow his dream. In Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer gives insight into…

How did humans gain consciousness? How can humans perceive time? The mind is capable of greater endeavors than the menial tasks it performs every day. During the waking hours, the mind is constrained by the laws of reality. By night, our minds are free. In “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce, Peyton Peyton irrationally struggles for hope, moments before his execution. Peyton’s body is unable to escape, so his mind takes it upon itself to find a solution. It simulates a reality…

both the positive and negative experiences of Ana, manipulating the way the reader observes time. When Ana and her fiancé, Isak, are in Spain and they cross time zones into Portugal and gain an hour. The moment is characterized as positive by the characters experience of a happy and romantic moment of crossing the bridge. Also, the experience of literal time travel connects Ana with a feeling of eternality. Ana and Isak cross a river described as an eternal being that has always and will always…

this is when the memories are transferred into the back of the brain as storage (Steiger). In stage two, the dreamless sleep occurs and the body is now relaxing. This is when memory encoding starts to begin and consolidation is not occurring at this moment. After that, stages three and four are when SWS is active and synchronised slow waves are found. This is when the body has the most rest (Steiger). The right amount of sleep will have more of the memory encoding process to finish. Finally, REM…

Growing up with catholic education, I was primarily taught the importance of reading and writing. The generic hamburger 5-paragraph essay format was on our 10 commandments of writing and so was the idea of a minimum 6-8 sentences per paragraph. Entering high school English class, I found myself in a different situation than most typical high school students. My school offered International Baccalaureate English classes; these classes were structured differently than that of AP or Standard…

Ayman Abdelalhaleem has a gap between his teeth but the confidence of ten men combined. He can debate for hours without losing his breath but throw a quick question that demands a response starting with an “A” at the start of and it will stump him. He can take time out of his day to help others no matter how big or small the task is. Brightening people’s days is somewhat of a specialty of his. He can take a situation and ultimately find something to laugh about. From a young age, Ayman had to…

absolutely true. It is a search for absolute certainty. In order to do this he uses what is referred to as the method of doubt. (Broughton, 2003) Descartes’ method of doubt is to analyse and reject every belief that it is possible to cast the slightest of doubt upon. This method was not to look at every belief separately but to look at…

it couldn't be done he replied Nehemiah 2:20 “20 I answered them, The God of heaven will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or memorial in Jerusalem.” He then brilliantly divided the work so every man would build near their house. This guaranteed the diligence and interest of the workers. He not only had faith but immense courage. As the enemy saw what Jerusalem they made evil plans to overturn them but Nehemiah worked without compromise…

lasting nearly six grueling months. Not one to walk the Boulevard of Broken Dreams, I tried to find a silver lining between puke sessions. For instance, did you know that giving up happy hour, eating better, and nearly vomiting all over your husband every ten minutes is a very inexpensive weight loss program? For the minor cost of being responsible for a priceless human life and enduring chronic exhaustion and nausea, you too can lose weight! What a bargain. Never one to be subtle in…

thirty years old, happily married, and living in a house. The reality was far from that I was 17 going to 18 and I was living at home with my mother and her husband and single. Not quite a fairy tale. That day was the worst and best day of my life. Waking up at 5:00 the morning with and excruciating kick to my lungs, which felt like somebody had just punched me, taking all my air out making me gasp for air. First thing that came to my mind was "what do I do?", "Is it time?" I called my…