Swimming With Frogs: Life In The Brown County Hills

Book Description

"I entered a solitary, reflective phase and resolved to write about nature, survival, regeneration, giving back, and love; about what I gleaned from being silent, listening, touching, seeing, and absorbing; and about discovering the magnificent diversity revealed when Brown County's multicolored panoply of leaves is peeled back. How could I have known in 1990, when my husband and I purchased a simple little cabin with a few acres of land, how much this bit of earth and its accoutrements would penetrate my soul, and how it would clarify what I care about and stand for?" —from the Prologue

For Ruth Ann Ingraham, spending part of her time in a cabin in the woods in southern Indiana becomes a journey of discovery—of herself and her place in the natural world. Suddenly freed from the urban daily grind, she is able to focus more intently on her surroundings. And she can look more deeply into herself and examine her beliefs.

As they settle into the place, the passing of each day offers up simple truths as Ruth Ann and her husband repair the cabin, learn the contour and texture of the land, and become ever more mindful of the animals and plants that share their living space. As the couple learn to walk in step with nature, they discover a depth and richness to life that has previously evaded them. In the hills of Brown County, Indiana, the author finds a fullness of life that survives even loss.

In addition to a text that is full of close observations of nature as well as thoughtful musings about life, Swimming with Frogs is beautifully illustrated with color photos and black and white drawings. It will appeal to naturalists of all stripes, fans of contemplative writing, and Brown County residents and visitors.

Customer Reviews:

Writing for your life.......2006-03-20

Rebeccasreads highly recommends SWIMMING WITH FROGS as an elegant, articulate & charmingly illustrated journal & text book about going rural, about living an examined life, & healing the wounds by returning to the Earth.

Brown County, Indiana is known for its breathtaking vistas of rolling hills, charming hollows & dense woods which remain home to abundant wild life -- deer, waterfowl, raptors, songbirds, et al, & ever since it was settled two centuries ago it has been a magnet for tourists, hunters & major American artists.

& in SWIMMING WITH FROGS, Ruth Ann Ingraham invites you there, writing the best read of this kind of personal journey from city to country, from heartache & loss to contentment & purpose.

Outstanding!

*Looking to the Hills to sweep away Melancholy . . . *.......2006-01-29

Ruth Ann Ingraham has given us a book of 'musings' and meanderings from her part-time home in Brown County INDIANA. Past mid-life the author discovered a new love, Joe Ingraham; with him she shared an exciting retirement that answered their curiosity and common interests of nature, photography, and philosophy.

The rugged cabin which became 'home' in southern Indiana has a lovely view of clouds and the Lilly Woods, and is situated in what the author describes as "an inviting wildness." The really wild part is the steep grade of the road from Wallow Hollow, a special challenge in icy weather for year 'round residents. An appropriate quotation from Mary Oliver is included: "Look, I want to love this world as though it's the last chance I'm ever going to get to be alive AND KNOW IT."

She shares John McPhee's advice for a beginning writer, and also that of Anne Lamott. From over 300 entries in her Journal (begun in 1990) Ingraham chose topics, and then her plan of attack. Not everyone can claim the distinction of being part of an international organization that trains "citizen frog monitors" of which she is one. While her campaign to rid the county (nation?) of non-native plants may seem to some as undemocratic, she is generous in her view that eventually more folks will become enlightened and work to make the hills of Brown County more pure.

Joe Ingraham died in 1997, and with her studies of frogs & other amphibious creatures, and her work as co-founder of the Indiana Native Plant & Wildflower Society, Mrs. Ingraham seems to be facing the future "swimmingly."

The book is a treat to 'dip' into for enjoyment of the outstanding photographs and enlightenment about chiggers & all the other creatures with whom we share these beautiful hills. Reviewer mcHAIKU urges you to keep a copy handy so your brain is not allowed to become atrophied.

Accurate Hoosier Portrait.......2005-03-31

Ruth Ann Ingraham's book gives an accurate portrayal of the diverse ecosystems in Indiana. Her writing style is scientifically accurate but also quite approachable to people that are decidely not scientific! Indiana's changing weather is explored at length and her stories relate precisely what it's like to experience a Hoosier winter where it will 10 below one day and 55 degrees the next. For anyone interested in weather, geography, biology, ornithology, mycology or just looking for a good read, this book is for you!

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A taxonomic monograph of Sapium Jacq., Anomostachys (Baill.) Hurus., Duvigneaudia J. Leonard, and Sclerocroton Hochst. (Euphorbiaceae tribe Hippomaneae) (Bibliotheca botanica)
R. Ch Kruijt
Manufacturer: E. Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Plants | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 3510480171

Book Description

In 1993 Miranda France moved to South America, drawn to Buenos Aires as the intellectual hub of the continent, with its wealth of writers and its romantic, passionate and tragic history. She found that is was all these things, but it was also a terrible place to live. The inhabitants of Buenos Aires are famously unhappy. All over South America they are known for their arrogance, their fixation of Europe and their moodiness. Very soon, Miranda France encounters' bronca' - the simmering and barely controllable rage that is a staple feature of life in the Argentinian capital. She finds that 'bronca' has deep roots: the violence and racism of the first European settlers; the dictatorships, especially in the 1970s when so many 'disappeared'; even Evita Peron, for there was no rage to rival Evita's.

Customer Reviews:

Let's be fair, there are plenty of Good Times too.......2007-05-31

The title of this book is a bit deceiving. It is a chronicle of the experiences (both good and bad) of an Englishwoman journalist in Buenos Aires in the mid 1990's. Not really knowing what to expect from this book, I figured that reading anything I could get my hands before moving to BsAs myself. It turned out that I was pleasantly surprised and found myself laughing out loud at points, always a sure fire sign of a good read. Using the experiences of her everyday life in BA as a framework to build off of, France interweaves hilarious anecdotes of daily life in BA, provides glimpses into the BA residents (they are known as Porteños) psyche, and gives an account of the all too often bloody history of Argentina. Although the France complains about the various short comings of BA, the chronic lack of coins, the crossed wires of the telephone system, the endless queues for anything and everything (all of which are still very much true), you can definitely tell that she has developed a soft spot in her heart for unique quirks that make BA what it is.
Argentina at the turn of the 20th century was the sixth richest country in the world behind the USA and the leading European powers. With so much promise for a grand future and such failure to achieve anything close to the possibilities it is no wonder the events of the subsequent hundred years are filled with political and economic instability. The rise and fall of Juan and Evita Peron, the various military dictatorships and the infamous `Dirty War' of the 1970's that accounted for the disappearance of tens of thousands of Argentines all invoke strong emotions that still reside just under the surface of Argentine life, often times coming directly to the forefront. France explores this common history and the effect it has had on the Argentine people. One possible result is the number of psychoanalysts in BsAs; per capita there is more than three times as many in BsAs than there are in New York City. Apparently it is a Porteño pastime to be psycho analyzed, indeed many find it hard to accept life without it, often working two or three jobs in order to pay for analysis.
For me this book gave me an idea of what to expect when I arrived here in the Paris of the South as it is often called. Although it speaks of a BsAs about 10 years past, it excited my imagination and curiosity in this giant Latin American city, the home of the Tango. The Tango is a sad genre speaking of lost loves, suicides, murder, and betrayal; a fitting theme for the constantly melancholy Porteños, something that really catches the essence of the people. France describes the dance, if done correctly, as passionate and loveless as a one-night stand.
Although I have found through my own experience some of France's tales have been embellished a bit for dramatic affect, the book provided me with a decent idea of what to expect once I arrived. Since France wrote Argentina suffered a terrible economic crisis in 2001 that sent the country reeling for years and it has had noticeable effects on all levels of society. Today Argentina is moving forward again and prosperity is returning, but it must be realized that much more than a decade has passed between 1997 and 2007.

perceptive if a bit too condescending.......2005-10-27

Like many English travel writers, Ms. France blends very well in the society she describes, and captures masterfully all kinds of moods, nuances and details. Her choice of subject for the ten chapters is a happy one, perhaps with the exception of the chapter on the pampas, a bit out of pace with the rest. Unfortunately, despite all her (I am sure, genuinely) best effort, English travelers abroad can never leave home a sort of superiority complex so that foreign ways of doing things inevitably end up looking just a bit silly! This book reminds me of Tim Parks' books on Italy: both France and Parks clearly love their subject countries, but can not help looking down upon it... albeit perhaps unconsciously! A great collection of pictures well worth reading!

Sorry for writer..........2005-01-23

I just could not finish this book. It is so mean. Why should a writer bother to stay in a country just to critize everything, exagerate and write all her negative points of view.

I was born in Buenos Aires, I live in Canada, I have live in Norway and I travelled a lot around the world (London included, city that I loved). I am not a fanatic nationalist and I think this book is so unfair.

Some British hate Argentina and some Argentinians hate Great Britain, because of the Malvinas (Falklands) war, because of the Soccer World Cup, because of Maradona or Beckman... who knows... and who cares.

I gave this book to a canadian friend who was curious about my comments about it, and he agrees that this book is awful to read.

I am sorry for the writer, she lost lots of time in a beautiful city and she did not enjoy it at all. It is a waste of time...

Engaging and thought-provoking travel book........2004-09-22

Three-and-a-half stars rating, really.

I think that it is unreasonable to expect a travel book to be anything except the author's perpective on the places visited. French clearly brings her own (British) agenda to Argentina, but she also just as clearly makes an effort to move beyond that to present a balanced look at the city she was living in. I found it a good read (almost too quick) and a well-formulated one. It was worth the time that I took to read it.

Good points:

France owns her own prejudices. She is very careful to note when she was being cranky and British about something so that the reader is clear that it is her persective and not the voice of authority.

I also like that she did not try to take a sweeping 20,000 foot view of the culture, but limited her commentary to those aspects to which she had access.

Less Good Points:

She treated some subjects (the Faulkland Islands, for example) more quickly than they seemed to deserve and at times that left me with the frustrating feeling that there was more to say about a subject but she had already moved on to the next point. I do not think that it needed to be much longer, but a little more filling in areas that got short shrift would have been good.

At times her writing was a little too precious and tried a little too hard to make all her moments meaningful. One of the things that makes a writer like Chatwin so great is that he does not try to connect the dots for the reader and is very sparse in the way that he handles detail.

The final very best point is that I enjoyed reading it and it inspired a desire to know more about the subject-- which is, I suppose, the ultimate point. Recommended if you like travel books.

Do not buy this if you want to learn about Buenos Aires.......2004-04-17

After living for many years in Buenos Aires, I've been living in the US for the last 5, I feel with some right to give an opinion about this book. All through the pages you can feel the bad intentions this girl had when wrote it. All the experiences she says she went through are unlikely to happen in everyday life in Buenos Aires. She expresses she lived a nightmare ("bad times") in one of the most friendly and beautiful cities on earth. I have lived in many places around the globe and I haven't found a place where I could have all the fun, make all the friends and fall in love so deeply with a city like in Buenos Aires. I am even planning on moving back there soon. Although with all the problems and contradictions any big city have, is one of the best places to live I found. Beautiful, charming, friendly, cosmopolitan... Is almost stupid thinking that the "unhappy" everyday events she tells, are specific BA problems. Last night I went to the grocery store (here in the US) and I have to stay in line for almost 30 minutes to pay. The phone, electric, etc.. bills I get here are exactly the same I used to get there. Apparently she was trying to meet and get involve with the most strange characters in town. That's not every day BA. It seems like she was in another city, some imaginary place made up buy her mind, all this peppered with a good dose of arrogancy and intentional disaproval. On the other hand she is not well informed at all about specific data about the city and its history. The book is over-charged with inaccurate information. I don't think Buenos Aires is the place for this girl (France), so, don't come back!!!!
For the rest of people that are interested in learning about Buenos Aires, do not waste your time and money reading this . A trip to Buenos Aires will take this book to pieces. God bless Buenos Aires!!!!+

Buenos Aires: through good times and bad, Argentina's beautiful capital cruises along to a lively tango beat.(PORT OF THE MONTH) : An article from: Cruise Travel

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Buenos Aires: through good times and bad, Argentina's beautiful capital cruises along to a lively tango beat.(PORT OF THE MONTH) : An article from: Cruise Travel
Glen Petrie
Manufacturer: World Publishing, Co. (Illinois)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Cruise Travel, published by World Publishing, Co. (Illinois) on July 1, 2005. The length of the article is 1750 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Buenos Aires: through good times and bad, Argentina's beautiful capital cruises along to a lively tango beat.(PORT OF THE MONTH)
Author: Glen Petrie
Publication: Cruise Travel (Magazine/Journal)
Date: July 1, 2005
Publisher: World Publishing, Co. (Illinois)
Volume: 27 Issue: 1 Page: 10(4)

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Bad Times in Buenos Aires: A Writer's Adventures in Argentina

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Bad Times in Buenos Aires: A Writer's Adventures in Argentina

Manufacturer: Ecco Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GL2M7M

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Bad Times in Buenos Aires: A Writer's Adventures in Argentina
Miranda France
Manufacturer: Ecco Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000O88WTE

Book Description

-- Times Literary Supplement

Customer Reviews:

An Illuminating Book.......2004-04-17

This book takes one on a breathtaking Odyssey through the sacred landscape of the world's oldest and most sacred city: Lord Siva's eternal abode. Eck's approach is sensitive and captivating, her scholarship is impressive, and the result of her labour has been a preciously insightful and informative book. Anyone seeking God owes it to himself to learn about the Holy City of Kashi, where death is transformed into divine liberation, and reading this book is an excellent way to get started. As both a Saiva and a scholar, I highly recommend it!

Benares: The Sacred Landscape of Varanasi

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Benares: The Sacred Landscape of Varanasi
Niels Gutschow
Manufacturer: Edition Axel Menges
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 393668104X

Book Description

The book gives a comprehensive view of the complex world of india's sacred place par excellence, also known as Barnes.

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Varanasi: A Pilgrimage to Light
Subhadra Sen Gupta
Manufacturer: Rupa & Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 8129101653

Book Description

Kashi, Benaras, Varanasi... for centuries it has been the most sacred of Hindu places of pilgrimage, the supreme tirthasthana the holy city that every Hindu wishes to visit at least once in their lifetime. In this book wander along its ghats, watch the aarti at is temples, read about its complex myths and legends and discover one of the most fascinating cities in the world. Includes color photographs.

Children of the World - Avinesh: A Child of the Ganges (Children of the World)

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Children of the World - Avinesh: A Child of the Ganges (Children of the World)
Jean-Charles Rey
Manufacturer: Blackbirch Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Board book

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1410302873

Book Description

By following Avinesh at home with his parents, at school and at play, readers discover life on the banks of the Ganges, India's most sacred river.

Metabolism Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In The Aquatic Environment

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Metabolism Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In The Aquatic Environment
USHA ED. VARANASI
Manufacturer: CRC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0849368448

Book Description

This book shows how the biological transport, bioaccumulation, disposition, and toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in the aquatic environment are influenced by the ability or inability of organisms to metabolize these environmental pollutants. Written by leading scientists in the fields of PAH metabolism and toxicity in both aquatic and mammalian systems, this book discusses recent advances in the areas of PAH biogeochemistry and bioaccumulation, microbial degradation, enzymes of activation, and detoxication, metabolism of PAH, and laboratory and field studies on carcinogenic/toxic effects. Additionally, important similarities and differences in metabolism of PAH by aquatic and terrestrial organisms are featured. The discussion of bioavailability, metabolism, and subsequent toxic effects should aid in the assessment of the ecological consequences of PAH in the aquatic environment.

Studies in Indian Temple Architecture (Papers presented at a Seminar held in Varanasi, 1967)

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Studies in Indian Temple Architecture (Papers presented at a Seminar held in Varanasi, 1967)

Manufacturer: American Institute of Indian Studies
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000BWPHCI

Product Description

Quarto. Contains papers presented at a seminar of scholars from all over the world held in November 1967 at Varanasi. The study of Indian temple architecture made much progress in the ten years before the seminar, which was organized to bring new studies to the attention of a wider circle. Includes 161 plates.

Making Forest of Bliss: Intention, Circumstance, and Chance in Nonfiction Film: A Conversation Between Robert Gardner + Akos Ostor (Voices and Visions in Film)

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In sight

Making Forest of Bliss: Intention, Circumstance, and Chance in Nonfiction Film: A Conversation Between Robert Gardner + Akos Ostor (Voices and Visions in Film)
Robert Gardner , and Ákos Östör
Manufacturer: Harvard Film Archive
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0674007875

Book Description

Poet Seamus Heaney wrote of the "deep and literate gaze" Robert Gardner transmits "with an intensity that passes from the documentary into the visionary" in his film Forest of Bliss. A decade and a half after its making, it is recognized as a contemporary classic of nonfiction cinema. Making Forest of Bliss, the first in Harvard Film Archive's series "Voices and Visions in Film," presents a dialogue between Gardner and his colleague anthropologist Akos Östör, illustrated with more than 150 images captured from the film. Recalling the conditions of its filming in Benares, India, in 1985, and presenting their moment-by-moment impressions upon watching it several years later, Gardner and Östör probe questions of what it means to capture life and death on film and ponder how the filmmaker's intentions, choices necessitated by circumstance, and the serendipity of chance contribute to this endeavor. The resulting conversation is a lively exploration of issues philosophical, anthropological, and--above all--artistic. The volume contains an introduction by philosopher Stanley Cavell and includes a newly mastered DVD of the complete film.

Customer Reviews:

In sight.......2006-01-17

Robert Gardner's masterpiece Forest of Bliss gives viewers a chance to soak in a striking visual document. However, as the meaning of events-along with the visual significance of color, grain, and the light and dark of day-is realized, viewers need to lean forward and analyze just what it is they are watching, with no narration or subtitles to guide the narrative. Viewers can feel captured, like the images, in the stages of life and death.
Making Forest of Bliss, a conversation between Gardner and Akos Ostor, an anthropologist and key collaborator of Gardner's in Benares, India where the film was shot, provides context for the film. Yet Gardner and Ostor do not translate the story; instead they tell something new. Beyond the four walls of the film frame existed their lived experience. As they move through the film shot by shot, their provocative memories emerge into an academic discourse about the nature of nonfiction film. Readers gain insight into the precision of composing actuality and the varied forms of ethnographic study and tempered revelation. Meaning is made, unmade, and remade in remembrance, between two artists in academia who share distinct viewpoints.

Death in Banaras (Lewis Henry Morgan Lectures)

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Death in Banaras (Lewis Henry Morgan Lectures)
Jonathan P. Parry
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Hinduism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
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Celebrations of Death: The Anthropology of Mortuary Ritual

ASIN: 0521466253

Book Description

As a place to die, to dispose of the physical remains of the deceased and to perform the rites that ensure that the departed attains a "good state" after death, the north Indian city of Banaras attracts pilgrims and mourners from all over the Hindu world. This book is primarily about the priests and other kinds of "sacred specialists" who serve them, about the way in which they organize their business, and about their representations of death and understandings of the rituals over which they preside.

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Veda Recitation in Varanasi
Wayne Howard
Manufacturer: South Asia Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Vedas | Hinduism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Bible & Other Sacred Texts | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 8120800710

Female Ascetics in Hinduism (Suny Series in Hindu Studies)

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Female Ascetics in Hinduism (Suny Series in Hindu Studies)
Lynn Teskey Denton
Manufacturer: State University of New York Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0791461807

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