Janet Wilder wrote:

> James Silverton wrote:
> > Hello All!
> >
> > Perhaps someone who knows more Spanish than me can enlighten me on
> > current usage? I had thought "mariscos" were shrimps but I've heard it
> > used recently for all kinds of seafood, not just invertebrates as
> > Wikipedia indicates.
> >
> > The Spanish Wikipedia says "Un marisco es, en gastronomía, un animal
> > marino invertebrado comestible. En esta definición se incluyen
> > normalmente los crustáceos, (camarones, picorocos, percebes, etc.),
> > moluscos (mejillones, almejas, berberechos, chipirones, etc.) y otros
> > animales marinos tales como algunos equinodermos (erizo de mar) y
> > algunos urocordados (piure).
> >
> > Interestingly, the Spanish Wiki page has a picture of "mariscos" as
> > above that also includes two bottles of Heinz Ketchup!
> >
> > This was prompted by a visit to a newish and excellent Mexican
> > restaurant near where I live, El Mariachi, whose speciality is seafood.
> >
> >
>
> Around here, mariscos is synonymous with sea food. Shrimp are camàrones
>

And for you language mavens out there "maricon" is a slang Spanish term for
"queer" or "homosexual" - which is what _I_ am...!!!

- sw aka 'Steve Sqwertz the Queer Shrimp"...

;-)