Before coming to Wagner, I was never personally a fan of any type of fried, processed, or unhealthy snack foods. However, every time I am hungry, I order an unhealthy meal at Hawks nest, and am always provoked by the cashier to get the combo (french fries and a drink). Why not get it if it is included? Once I am served french fries, I feel obligated to eat them because they are right in front of me, once I am given a cup, I walk over to the drink machine and get myself an iced tea or soda. This is a problem because if the waters served in Hawks did not use Flex Dollars, I would skip the soda machine all together; but, since a soda is included and not a water, I opt for the unhealthier, cheaper choice.

In the morning, seeing people walking around campus with their Starbucks cups makes me crave the taste of coffee. The fact that class is very early in the morning is a cue to my body falsely convincing me that I need caffeine to get through my day. When I am waiting on line, I hear everyone shouting out their bagel orders. This as well makes me crave something more to go along with my already unhealthy sugar filled coffee. Since we are allowed a certain amount of money for each swipe at Starbucks, I am even further provoked to get a bagel with my drink, because if i don’t use the money in my swipe now, I cannot eat again until lunch time.

After my 12:50 class ends, I feel as if I must get lunch because if I miss my lunch swipe, it does not carry over. The idea of a “swipe” leads me to eat more at certain times in the day because of my fear of “missing out on a meal (swipe).” I eat at times when I am not even hungry, and most of the time ending up eating very unhealthily, all because I don’t want to miss out on my lunch swipe.