James Joyce

BEIJING -- Every day, 83-year-old Xiao Qian and hi 65-year-old wife, Wen Jieruo, rise at 5 a.m. to tackle the intellectual equivalent of climbing Mount Everest: translating James Joyce's massive stream-of-consciousness novel "Ulysses" from English into Chinese.In their cramped, book-lined apartment, the couple have been at this mind-boggling task for more than two years. At the rate of one page of translation every one to three days, they hope to finish in 1994, coincident with their 40th wedding anniversary.

One of my long-standing life questions is, What makes an Irish Pub an Irish Pub? Is it dark, moody shadows peopled by whispering conspirators nursing black pints amid the rhythmic phthwacking of darts hitting corkboard? Or is it any old joint that serves shepherd pie, taps Guinness, and cranks out a Van Morrison number every half hour or so? Probably Irish pubness is like art: a whole lot easier to recognize than define. 12:30 p.m. We enter James Joyce after a 25-minute walk.

DUBLIN -- Stately plump Buck Mulligan would recognize the tower overlooking Dublin Bay where the events in James Joyce's "Ulysses" began the morning of June 16, 1904.But Mr. Mulligan, who was modeled on Oliver St. John Gogarty, a poet, critic, surgeon, prankster, friend and enemy of Joyce, might be inclined to wit-lash some of the ways Dublin marks Bloomsday -- its annual celebration of all things Joycean -- and the moves of Leopold Bloom and others in the novel.There were commercial events celebrating the writer, who spent much of his adult life trying to borrow money, and a weeklong symposium, sponsored by Trinity College and Bailey's, the liquor company.

Some people love noisy restaurants because they equate noise with high energy; some don't. Either way, this list should be useful to you. The main reason these places are noisy is because they attract crowds with their good food and the good times they offer. Just plan your visit at an off-hour or on an off-day. 1 Cinghiale in Harbor East: 2 Clementine in Hamilton: 3 The Helmand in Mount Vernon: 4 Paolo's Ristorante in Towson: 5 Pazo in Fells Point: 6 Petit Louis in Roland Park: 7 RA Sushi in Harbor East: 8 Red Star Bar & Grill in Fells Point: 9 Tark's Grill in Lutherville: 10 Woodberry Kitchen in: Woodberry/Hampden: readers talk back Venturing out to the suburbs I think Eggspectations [in Ellicott City]

James Joyce's "Ulysses" is a language-loving, raucous ramble full of puns, ribaldry and thousands of acts of literary playfulness no one should be expected to understand any more than a concert-goer must play a violin. It is best read energetically and unhesitatingly in a state between limp relaxation and mad drunkenness.-- or --James Joyce's "Ulysses," arguably the most important novel in the 20th century, is a work of intense technical complexity, a modernist icon. Appropriately, it has sown and nourished more written analysis and scholarly commentary than any other single act of literature, sparing the Bible, if you register that as literature.

James Joyce's classic short story "The Dead" takes place at the annual holiday party given by a pair of maiden aunts and their niece, all of whom are music teachers. The guests and some prize students sing, a meal is served, a toast is made, and the hostesses are roundly praised. It's a gracious, genteel event on a snowy Dublin evening at the turn of the 20th century, and it's indicative of how beautifully the musical, "James Joyce's The Dead," captures the spirit of the occasion that you feel like one of the guests, even in the Kennedy Center's spacious Eisenhower Theater.

St. Patrick's Day is upon us, which means it's time to raise a pint and ponder this year's Irish puzzle: How in God's name did the greatest writer of the 20th century become a pizza? This is the question that comes to mind when one visits one of Baltimore's most popular new destinations, the James Joyce Irish Pub & Restaurant at the corner of President and Aliceanna streets. The restaurant, open since November in the ground floor of the parking garage of the new Inner Harbor Marriott, is your typical Irish-theme spot: wooden partitions imported from the home country, reliable shepherd's pie and corned beef, folk music piped over the speakers, the inevitable Guinness.

Baltimoreans always seem to have room in their hearts for one more authentic Irish pub, especially one that comes with a few modifications to make it more palatable to American tastes. I'm thinking of NFL 2Night on the TV over the authentic Irish bar, the five-layer Tex Mex dip on the menu as well as corned beef and cabbage, and the authentic Irish snow peas served with the Molly Bloom's chicken. But the new James Joyce Irish Pub & Restaurant also knows where not to compromise: The good-natured staff includes a number of Irish natives, which gives a fine flavor to the place.

Dr. Edward James Beattie,79, a lung cancer specialist who treated Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and the last Shah ofIran, died of skin cancer Feb. 27 in New York.Mark Dexter Hollis,89, a public health official who warned of the dangers of air and water pollution nearly 50 years ago, died Feb. 24 in Lakeland, Fla.William Workman,77, who helped create CBS-TV's venerable current events program "Face the Nation," died Thursday in Sarasota, Fla., after years of battling Parkinson's disease.

The James Joyce Pub An upscale version of your typical Irish joint, James Joyce offers all the pub goodies you'd expect plus a lot of Americanized bonuses you wouldn't. From Guinness pints and shepherd's pie to plasma screens and five-layer Mexican dip, this pub fuses Irish tradition with American nightlife. Where -- 616 S. President St. Call -- 410-727-5107 Web site -- thejamesjoyce pub.com Notable -- The dark wood and comfy booths were made in the old country and shipped to the city, giving the pub an authentic, though atypically clean, appearance.

Dublin - The two men drink standing near the back of the long bar at Davy Byrnes, one of the many watering holes in this city that, in the words of writer Samuel Beckett, who once lived upstairs, have been known to house "broken glass and indiscretion." In the back, because that's well away from the "whippets" and "blow-ins" who tend to wander in, armed with neither intellect nor wit, if one distinguishes between the two, settle on the first available stool and ask for a "Boodweiser" from the barman.

Ninth in an occasional series Make no mistake: Irish stew is not meant to be ordered as an appetizer, like its lighter soup cousins. It's a hearty meal that has sustained the Irish for centuries. "There's even a song from the 1800s about it," said Sidney Mintz, research professor at the Johns Hopkins University, who studies the history of food. "It goes, `Hurrah for Irish stew / It sticks to your belly like glue.' There was recognition that it was filling." Irish stew, or stobhach Gaelach as it is known in Gaelic, traditionally is made with lamb, potatoes, carrots, onions, herbs and seasonings.

The James Joyce Pub An upscale version of your typical Irish joint, James Joyce offers all the pub goodies you'd expect plus a lot of Americanized bonuses you wouldn't. From Guinness pints and shepherd's pie to plasma screens and five-layer Mexican dip, this pub fuses Irish tradition with American nightlife. Where -- 616 S. President St. Call -- 410-727-5107 Web site -- thejamesjoyce pub.com Notable -- The dark wood and comfy booths were made in the old country and shipped to the city, giving the pub an authentic, though atypically clean, appearance.

World Cup matches can cause conflict for hyphenated Americans. Do they root for the upstart U.S., or back their ancestral roots, since the old country might actually have a chance to go far in Germany? Those who call themselves Italian-Americans dealt with that dilemma yesterday, when their favorite soccer nations played to a 1-1 draw. "Sure, I have mixed emotions," said Pete Caringi, the UMBC soccer coach whose grandparents were born in Italy. "I've been following the World Cup since 1966, when I was 11. I've always rooted for Italy, but since the U.S. made it in '90, I've been able to watch them grow, and support them, too. It's torture when they play each other."

One way to ward off the chill of autumn is with a hot chicken potpie. Pick the wrong restaurant, and it's more like chicken potluck. These places are some of the city's better options. Sobo Cafe 6-8 W. Cross St. 410-752-1518 HOURS // noon to 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily Sobo Cafe makes only a number of these pies per night, so call in early to stake a claim. A nearly foot-long slab of crust covers a homey mix of vegetables and chicken in this $11 pie. Chunks of dark andwhite meat (one with a bone still in it)

Next Wednesday, for many of us, is the epochal literary feast day of the past century, the one-hundredth Bloomsday. It honors -- if that's the proper term for rituals that often get wet and wild -- James Joyce's novel Ulysses. As a rule, I abhor absolute superlatives, but I will support a widely held assessment that Ulysses is the most important, the most influential, novel written in the 20th century. All of the events in the book (which was first published on Feb. 2, 1922, and is 735 pages long in the edition I prefer)

Ninth in an occasional series Make no mistake: Irish stew is not meant to be ordered as an appetizer, like its lighter soup cousins. It's a hearty meal that has sustained the Irish for centuries. "There's even a song from the 1800s about it," said Sidney Mintz, research professor at the Johns Hopkins University, who studies the history of food. "It goes, `Hurrah for Irish stew / It sticks to your belly like glue.' There was recognition that it was filling." Irish stew, or stobhach Gaelach as it is known in Gaelic, traditionally is made with lamb, potatoes, carrots, onions, herbs and seasonings.

St. Patrick's Day is upon us, which means it's time to raise a pint and ponder this year's Irish puzzle: How in God's name did the greatest writer of the 20th century become a pizza? This is the question that comes to mind when one visits one of Baltimore's most popular new destinations, the James Joyce Irish Pub & Restaurant at the corner of President and Aliceanna streets. The restaurant, open since November in the ground floor of the parking garage of the new Inner Harbor Marriott, is your typical Irish-theme spot: wooden partitions imported from the home country, reliable shepherd's pie and corned beef, folk music piped over the speakers, the inevitable Guinness.

Baltimoreans always seem to have room in their hearts for one more authentic Irish pub, especially one that comes with a few modifications to make it more palatable to American tastes. I'm thinking of NFL 2Night on the TV over the authentic Irish bar, the five-layer Tex Mex dip on the menu as well as corned beef and cabbage, and the authentic Irish snow peas served with the Molly Bloom's chicken. But the new James Joyce Irish Pub & Restaurant also knows where not to compromise: The good-natured staff includes a number of Irish natives, which gives a fine flavor to the place.