Sometimes you just want to hear something plain. Sounds of water can be like that. When you sit down and listen to a recording of a stream, a river, a small waterfall, there’s not a lot happening that you need to keep track of. There's little difference in the sound, and no pattern to follow. You can just put it on in the background or watch it without knowing anything.

Its value might come on a Saturday when you don’t have an agenda or anything to get done. You might be working on laundry, or cooking, or squirreling away on the couch with nothing planned at all. The sound of water can be a backdrop to it. Some people take it while reading or thinking. Others might turn to it when they don’t want silence but don’t want music or conversation, either.

You can find water sound videos or audio tracks on many websites and apps. Some people look for streams, rivers, rain on rocks, waves at a shore. You can listen with headphones or speakers. Others turn down the volume sufficiently low so it doesn’t drown out any other sounds in the room. Others may prefer it be louder if they’re using it to distract themselves from outside noise.

Today is Saturday and that may mean something to everybody differently. If you are looking for something to listen to that doesn't demand anything of you, the sound of water is one possibility.

Koi can also identify the humans who feed them. Eventually, they build an association between a person standing near the pond and food. This can cause koi to come to the surface when someone walks up to the pond. They don’t do this with everybody, but they are more likely to react most to people they encounter frequently.

Some koi can even be taught to eat out of your hand. Usually this consists of hand feeding them for sucessive days while they get used to you. It requires patience, but many koi will come to eat pellets or other food from an outstretched hand without reservation. It is a quicker process in koi that is brought up in an environment where people regularly feed them.

It's also not unusual for koi to play follow the leader along the side of the pond with someone walking alongside the pond. They can also shift in the same direction and hang around the spot where the person is standing. This behaviour is associated with their conditioning to associate humans with food. When feeding takes place regularly in one location, koi will tend to congregate in that vicinity whenever a person presents. Koi are generally not aggressive, and it is common for them to share the pond environment with other fish. For this reason nothing will drive them away or make them hide when you feed them by hand, or if you stand close by the pond.

The essential ingredients for a good chocolate milkshake are chocolate ice cream, milk, and chocolate syrup. Since the ice cream is what brings most of the flavor and texture here, a good chocolate ice cream is key. A general rule is around three scoops of ice cream per half cup of milk. This will leave you with a thick yet drinkable texture.

Chocolate syrup boosts the sweetness and also aids in creating a stronger chocolate flavor. A tablespoon or two should do it. You’ll want to tinker with this amount to your desired level of sweet or rich. Just blend up, and if you want it a bit thinner, you can add small amounts of milk, as necessary. If it’s too thin, blend in more ice cream. It should work when you blend it for around 20 to 30 seconds. Overblending may cause it to be too runny.

Some prefer vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate syrup over chocolate ice cream. That works too, but it is not nearly as robust in flavor. Some may include things like cocoa powder or chocolate chips, but those are not essential. If you want a chocolate milkshake, straightforward with good flavor and a smooth consistency, then your best bet might be rich, chocolate ice cream with whole milk and a dash of syrup.

If you’re like me, I think most would answer that puppy dogs are the cutest animals to ever grace the earth. There is something about their petite size, large eyes and not quite grown up features that captivates. It is readily apparent when you see a puppy just how different it is from an adult dog. Its head is frequently rounder, ears and paws sometimes too big for its head. It’s a physical mismatch of that sort that makes it pop.

Puppies also have the habit of doing things that humans find fun. Nour was a flimsy, uncoordinated child, he didn’t have command of his own movements and was still trying to figure the world out. They lumber around awkwardly or freeze to zero in on commonplace items, which can be odd. People see this and follow their own reactions.

Of course, the sound of a puppy barking or making other noises is usually also irresistible to most people. They sound high pitched, and quick, and frequently like something a baby might make as a noise. It can result in people paying more attention to them.

People who don't normally really care about animals will still look at a puppy. They may not want to get close to it or even hold it, but they often see it and watch it.

Preparing Ghana jollof in the Ghanaian style typically begins by using well cooked meat or fish to add flavor. Most people do season their meat with onion, ginger, garlic, and pepper before cooking the meat.

Once it is fried or grilled, it is put aside. Next, the jollof base is prepared with fresh tomatoes, tomato paste, onion, and pepper. The stew is cooked until the raw smell of the tomatoes is gone. Spices like curry powder, bay leaves, and seasoning cubes are often added at this stage. Some also add vegetables such as carrots or green beans, but that's a matter of taste.

The rice is typically long grain and parboiled rice. Some wash it in warm water to get excess starch off. When the stew is ready, the rice is added and mixed well.

Furniture quality water or stock is added in moderation so the rice will cook well without getting soggy. The pot is usually covered tightly, sometimes with foil, to capture the steam.

Low heat is used so the rice can absorb the stew and can be cooked evenly. Mostly, the rice is checked on from time to time, stirred lightly if need be, and seasoned based on individual taste.

Young Ghanaian cadets undergo military training, entering a highly structured and disciplined environment, where they learn the basics of drills and commands, moving in formation and teamwork, as well as their respective values and codes of conduct.

Some cadets may find it difficult to adapt to this environment from their civilian orientation, for example, waking early morning, maintaining uniforms, physical competence. Others may be able to adapt comfortably, based on background and perspective; the military training is progressive and includes physical training, lectures, practicals and field exercises.

The cadets gain field experience in national security, weapon handling, military ethics, and survival training.

Through incremental structured use of feedback and opportunity for improvement, cadets will be expected to continue to show improvement in physical ability, knowledge, and behaviour over time. Instructors give feedback as to performance; if mistakes are made, instructors make corrections during drills and overviews, and cadets reinforce their adherence to their teams and systems of performance outcomes.

Ultimately, the training is enforced to create consistency and reliability.

Cadets train often with other cadets from different areas and schools; while this may create challenges in communication and collaboration aspects, it can also help them within a mixed group.

The training processes are long and developmental, and for the trainee, progress often occurs in small steps.

Beans stew or slop and bread for Sunday is the ideal meal. It's simple, filling, and easy. The stew can be made cheap with a few ingredients, usually beans, onions, tomatoes, and some oil or flavor. You can use canned beans or pre rinse dried beans. Either way, you will have something soft, warm, and filling.

Bread really goes with it, because you don't have to do anything with it but slice it(unless you want to toast it. The bread can be any bread, bakery bread you just bought, or sliced white bread from the store. The bread presents better texture in combination with beans, and you can use it to dip into the stew than using a spoon. Plus, it gives the meal a feeling of completeness.

It is cheap, and most people probably have the ingredients at home. This meal can change to different taste preferences or diets with more vegetables or less oil or change the type of beans. Some people like to toast the bread. Some don't.

You do not need much time or thought. It does not require any special cooking skills.

When you think about chicken and popcorn, you’re obviously not just serving two foods on a plate. You’re actually cooking these items together in a single process. This is not the same as eating popcorn separately as a snack, and fried chicken as a meal, this is about mixing raw chicken pieces with popcorn kernels and cooking them at the same time so they will both finish cooking at the same time in the same container.

There are a couple of ways you can do this. The first is to use an oven. You would use small seasoned pieces of chicken and unpopped kernels in a baking dish or sheet pan. You need to use high heat to get the kernels to pop but give the chicken enough time and heat to fully cook can be tough to get right. If the chicken is large, it may not be fully cooked before the popcorn burns. If there is not enough heat you will not get the kernels to pop.

Another way is to use a stove top pan with a lid. Add oil, pieces of chicken and popcorn kernels to the pan. The weight of the lid keeps the popcorn contained once it pops. But the biggest problem in this approach is moisture.

Jollof rice, it just does something for me. I don’t know how else to describe it, whenever I imagine food I actually like, it’s always there. It’s not fancy or complicated, but it feels right. I don’t have to convince myself to do it. I just want it

There’s just something about the flavor spicy, savory, that deep tomato taste that resonates. It’s audacious without being excessive. When it’s done right. That when the rice is tender, but not gummy, and the stew has boiled down so it’s not soupy it just slaps. You have one bite and you’re like yes, this is exactly what I’ve been craving.

People fight about it too much. Who has the best Jollof That country being the first. Honestly, I don’t care. I’ve had good and bad ones from everywhere. Other days I want the smokier variety. Other days I crave something cleaner, less greased. Well, it depends.

What bothers me is how simple it is to screw up. I mean, it’s rice. It shouldn’t be that difficult. If you hurry it or attempt to make too clever, it crumbles. Undercooked rice f*cks the whole thing up. Too much tomato and it becomes soup. There’s this thin line between trying and trying too hard.

Still, even the not so great ones aren’t the worst. I’ll still chow down on them. Because even when it’s a little off, it makes me think of what I like. It’s that type of cuisine you return to it, even when you’ve already had it all.

Jollof ain’t perfect but it doesn’t have to be. It’s a personal favorite of mine. That’s really the extent of it.

The afternoon’s stretching with us, sort of lazy. That in between time sandwiched between those experiences breakfast is a fading memory, dinner is far away. Not too hungry, but hungry enough that, when you smell something good, that hunger will go away.

Like, someone says fried chicken rice and suddenly it’s really hard to concentrate on anything else. You know the type of place tiny shop, ceiling fans whirring, a radio on low. The rice is in a pile, steaming, and the the chicken is cracking under the prongs. Without many words, you all sit down. You may, or may not, have a friend with you.

Juice gets ordered without thinking. Ice clinks in the cup. Bright color. The sweet sour variety that makes your mouth water before the first sip of it. The table would have bits of tissue paper, maybe a stain or two. You wipe it off subconsciously.

Outside, the traffic hums but does not shout. Inside, it’s slow. Not quiet exactly, just... easy. The afternoon that doesn’t beg. You eat, possibly look at your phone, possibly not.

No rush to leave. No real plan after. It’s not a meal you need it’s just one that fills a space. A day feeling a little more solid. Just enough salt, just enough cold juice, just enough time to not do too much of anything.