
Over the past couple of days I have changed the name and the domain of this website ā or in hosting parlance āmigratedā ā from āCulturedallroundman.comā to āCulturedarm.comā. The new name is shorter and potentially more inclusive; and I was already using it for my Twitter, Instagram, YouTube accounts and more.
As the āAboutā section of the site now belatedly explains, the name āCulturedallroundmanā derives from a line in James Joyceās Ulysses. In the tenth episode, āWandering Rocksā, Lenehan and MāCoy discuss Bloom, who they have just spotted browsing a booksellerās cart. Lenehan recalls attending a dinner at the Glencree reformatory in 1894, at which Bloom and his wife Molly were also present; and Lenehan describes for MāCoy his fondling of Molly in the back of the coach during the ride home, as Bloom sat opposite and pointed out the stars and comets in the night sky.
* * *
āāĀ The lad stood to attention anyhow, he said with a sigh. Sheās a gamey mare and no mistake. Bloom was pointing out all the stars and the comets in the heavens to Chris Callinan and the jarvey: the great bear and Hercules and the dragon, and the whole jingbang lot. But, by God, I was lost, so to speak, in the milky way. He knows them all, faith. At last she spotted a weeny weeshy one miles away. And what star is that, Poldy? says she. By God, she had Bloom cornered. That one, is it? says Chris Callinan, sure thatās only what you might call a pinprick. By God, he wasnāt far wide of the mark.
Lenehan stopped and leaned on the riverwall, panting with soft laughter.
ā Iām weak, he gasped.
MāCoyās white face smiled about it at instants and grew grave. Lenehan walked on again. He lifted his yachtingcap and scratched his hindhead rapidly. He glanced sideways in the sunlight at MāCoy.
ā Heās a cultured allroundman, Bloom is, he said seriously. Heās not one of your common or garden ⦠you know ⦠Thereās a touch of the artist about old Bloom.ā
* * *
In the context of Ulysses, the phrase ācultured allroundmanā suggests Bloomās breadth of character in a way that subverts narrow concepts of masculinity. However beyond that context, I wondered whether the name āculturedallroundmanāĀ was viewed as indicating a site meant for men: designed, for instance, to tell them about shaving nicely.
The address culturedallroundman.com, and all links pointing to pages and posts on that site, should now lead to the equivalent here. If you are reading this, you will already have navigated and may even have noticed the change. But if your journey has proven difficult, or if you go astray attempting to navigate further ā or otherwise spot a broken link or image or have any thoughts regarding theĀ new or oldĀ name ā send me an email at:Ā [email protected]