Correction. 1 is awkward. Try this instead: "To do this would take a long time." 2 is incorrect. "It takes a long time for me to do this." is right. 3 is correct.

I'd argue your goals are in conflict. If de-emphasis is what you want, use commas. Brackets tend to emphasize their contents simply because they are less common. But brackets also suggest greater separation. So if non-essentiality is your goal,

One usually thinks of wind pushing rather than pulling: "The wind pushed me back." Leave off the preposition, unless you want to get poetic: "The wind pulled at me." "The wind is pulling on me." "The wind licked at my ankles."

"Another day in paradise." is meant sarcastically. You might use it when you wake up in a bus station and realize you'll probably be there all day.

@ - "at" 3+4=7 - "Three plus four equals 7." 3*5 - "Three times five." 2.1*3.5 - "Two point one times three point five." 2^5 - "Two to the power of five" sin(x) - "Sine of x" or "Sine x" 1.6*10^(-19) - "One point six times ten to the

"Ever" suggests an infinite span of time, or at least a lifetime. Without "ever" the implication is that the letting go will be soon.

You need the comma. The proper noun is parenthetical. You can test this by lopping it off: "I am your host." The meaning is preserved. Compare this to "I thought I saw aunt Jane." No comma, because "I thought I saw aunt" doesn't quite work.

For the record, "howl" can be a noun or a verb. "His howl was like a siren." But "to howl" and "to understand" are verbs in any language. Aren't they?

No difference. Though adverb placement frequently does change meaning (as opposed to changes meaning frequently).

Did someone call me?