Rocco's Refined Tastes

As I rounded the corner from the kitchen bringing my salad, I was astonished to spot Rocco on the dining table tasting my gazpacho. Rocco has never been know as a gastronome. Indeed, he always seemed to prefer quantity to quality. Felix, on the other hand, has a distinct preference for smoked meat and is very fussy about the cat treats I proffer.

By the way, the Guadalajara Gazpacho from the uptown Whole Foods is really wonderful with its floating bits of avocado and corn niblets - perfectly spiced. This summer, I have become devoted to Whole Foods soups - the tomato basil bisque especially. Maybe it comes from my 7 weeks in Bolivia where wonderful soups are so much a part of every main meal.

These last weeks in New Orleans have been particularly hot. Until the end of July it would rain every afternoon, lowering the temperature and encouraging the lushness of our tropical vegetation. Lately, the sky's a pale blue and the sun is unrelenting. Walking out of the house even after dark is entering a continuous steam bath. I try to run my errands in the morning and even then the heat is oppressive. When I used to do darkroom work, it was necessary to correct for water temperature, so I know that cold tap water, this time of year, is in the 80s.

I had a long chat with my neighbor Donald, who was walking his poodle Tiger. He was concerned about the storms in the Gulf and the Atlantic. We agreed that if another hurricane comes this way, its all over for the city. That's an exaggeration but after all the effort that has gone into the recovery, and great progress is being made, a major storm would be devastating. The levee system has not been fully reinforced and any breach would be a repetition of the Katrina flood.