I thought I was done writing about stupidity - at least for a little while - but another example of it came through our door last Friday.
Actually, this person wasn't stupid, he was quite calm and intelligent.
What a bicycle tour did to his property wasn't just stupid, it was illegal.
The cyclist group that came through last week set up portable potties, and probably some drinks and snacks, on his property without his permission.
Seriously?
I looked at him open-mouthed. People often ask me if I make stories up. I mean honestly, I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried.
Can you imagine the gall it takes to just cruise along, say "Oh, this is a good spot!" and put your stuff on someone else's property, without permission? Getting portapotties delivered takes some planning - couldn't the organizers just have called and asked permission to use the property, as well? The business name and number is on a nice sign right outside!
Frankly, around here, these yahoos were lucky they weren't met with the nice click of some shotgun shells being ratcheted into a double-barrelled 12-gauge shotgun.
This is the same bike tour that didn't bother telling the marshal's office or fire department they were coming through, either, complete with a couple of hundred cyclists.
So I'm waving my arms around the office and cursing morons who don't respect property rights, and Carole calmly replied, "I think some of these people have a sense of entitlement."
As usual, the more I thought about it, the more Carole was right.
I guess because these folks have enough money to buy nice bicycles for thousands of dollars, and take a week or two off work to ride through the mountains, they don't believe they need our permission to do anything, even if they want to park on our property for an hour.
Now responsible cyclists and tourists, please don't get me wrong. We love to have you here. When Ride the Rockies came through Bayfield and Ignacio several years ago, a couple of us set up a rest station in Eagle Park, and Psychedelic Mojo came and played some live music. A lot of the riders said they loved it and appreciated our hospitality.
But guess what? Ride the Rockies sent us their itinerary a couple of months in advance, and we had time to plan a nice welcome! And I'm pretty sure they got permission from landowners for all of their stops.
So tourists, yes, please come visit. We want you to stay in our lodges and eat at our restaurants and buy gas at our stations.
Just ask our permission if you need something, and most of the time, we'll oblige.
Have a great 4th of July, and thanks for reading!