The passage of years is not improving my tolerance for morons. At Congaree National Park yesterday, a couple of women took their couple of dogs up on the boardwalk. Congaree NP has a very nice and clearly defined dog trail, and very clear signs saying no dogs on the boardwalk. While there is no explanatory text, it's a fair bet that this rule is due to the fact that if a dog poops on the boardwalk and somebody steps on and slips in it, it's going to be a fairly bad day at Congaree National Park.
Regardless, I tried to explain to the women that dogs aren't allowed on the boardwalk and that there's a special trail for dogwalking. They said that they got on the trail and it took them out to the road, so they were taking the boardwalk instead. I don't even know how to cope with this level of unthinking. ("If you get on a trail and it doesn't go in the direction you want it to go, try the other direction" doesn't strike me as a difficult concept to get.)
Short of tackling them, there wasn't a lot I could do about it. I could have shouted to a ranger about 100 feet away, but she already had a large group to handle. I wish my communication skills were better; "Those signs saying 'no dogs on the boardwalk' probably mean no dogs on the boardwalk," wasn't a brilliant conversational gambit. "They won't do nothin'," wasn't a really brilliant rejoinder either. I didn't let the situation spoil a gorgeous day for a walk, but it sucked a significant portion of the fun from it.
Speaking of morons (this time me): I'm closing in on the source of my dehydration problem. I finally sorted through all the electrolytes I could be missing and settled on magnesium. I started eating a handful of pistachios (which are magnesium-rich) at random moments and suddenly the cramps in my calves disappeared without resort to coconut water. So there you are: if you're dehydrated, go nuts.
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