Entered a love/hate relationship with field guides about 14 years ago, when I built a home on a quiet little lake in upstate New York. The variety of aquatic and wetland life suddenly available for inspection was overwhelming, and I depended on the guides to aid, abet, and confirm my beginner's observations. Pretty soon, though, I felt the stirrings of resistance, the kind one might feel toward an over-directive mentor who was cramping a more open-ended learning curve.
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