Mark Thorson wrote:

> I've been real tempted by the pork sides that
> appear to have been spiced and deep-fried or
> something. Two (of the three) nearby Asian
> food markets have a sort of deli section where
> you can buy stuff like that. When I say "side",
> I mean a whole side of pork, not "side dish".
> I can buy pieces of a side.

The ones I have seen are torsos, minus the loin. Basically, they're the
bacon and the ribs. They're pretty fatty if you're not used to that, so
be warned.

> I'm most interested in the one Asian market which
> carries live turtles. They have two different
> types. There's a sign on the cage not to try
> to touch them because they bite. One type is a
> fearsome turtle with a beak like a parrot

Snapping turtle, probably. Very handsome creatures, usually covered in
mud. None of the photos on the web show the horn, but the one I tried to
pick up last year, before I knew it was snapping turtle, had a horn. It
was was just steppign onto a 4-line highway and I thought I'd pick it up
and point it back towards the creek. That's when it dawned on me - Oh!
It's a *snapping* turtle. Duh.

-sw