The Chinese calendar has decreed that 1996 shall be the year of the Boar.
That should give a fillip to the promotion program of the Wild Boar Association.
First, we must dispel a few misconceptions about boars and sows. Pigs are accused of being piggy when it comes to victual consumption. This is nonsense. You might see a horse or a cow eat until it is sick, bloated or foundered but when a pig is full of food it will go have a nap.
Men and women of North America spend billions each year to keep their hair styled and in place. A pig’s hair is always neatly in place. Mind you, it never gets long enough to braid or make a pony tail, but from the time the pig is born until its hide is turned into gloves its hair never has to be combed or Brylcreemed into place.
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The pig is a much more adept conversationalist than a horse or a chickadee. It can make sounds of anger, distress or contentment. A horse may go a whole day without offering a vocal comment. A chickadee, on the other hand, says “chickadee” all day long and lets you figure out whether it is sad, mad, glad or suffering from dyspepsia.
Satchel Paige, the famed baseball pitcher, said: “Never eat pork, it angrifies your blood.”
I appreciated Satchel’s pitching but his culinary advice was the pits.
Admiring pigs doesn’t mean avoiding pork. Four years ago I was in Calgary for a Canadian Farm Writers meeting and we were served a pork standing rib roast. It was delicious. Bacon, tenderloin, short ribs, chops and sausages all should combine to produce a culinary symphony in this Year of the Boar.
