title: MySQL SELECT COUNT(*) takes minutes on an empty table
body: <p>Not much more to say. </p>
  
  <pre><code>mysql&gt; select count(*) from mytable;
  +----------+
  | count(*) |
  +----------+
  |        0 |
  +----------+
  1 row in set (1 min 2.35 sec)
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>There seems to be nothing extraordinary with the table. Only a few varchars and a few decimals. No keys, no indexes. It's the only table on the database.</p>
  
  <p>How can I investigate this?</p>