Incident with a Mountain Dweller

This weekend was the annual Rhodo softball tournament/drunk fest in Valle Crucis, NC. Chris and I went up on Friday and we had a good fun. This year the band played at the campground rather than the apple barn up the street. I was told that whoever books the apple barn for the band booked it on the wrong weekend and playing at the campground was not their first choice. Personally, I prefer it when they play at the campground but the band makes less money because there is no door to set a table to collect an entrance fee.

Sunday morning my buddy Chris didn't want to leave so I went for a short walk. The owner of the campground and some of his buddies had spent the weekend at a trailer by the restroom. I had to walk past them in order to get to the street and the Mast General Store. I had been walking past them all weekend and didn't even really notice them as I went by. About halfway do the store one of the owner's buddies came flying down the road toward me on one of those four wheel offroad death machines. I could hear him coming and I could tell he had crossed the center line and was coming toward me so I stopped and turned to look. He pulled up right next to me. He had a cigarette in his mouth, his left shoulder had a huge healing scrape wound and and his arm was in a sling. I can only assume he dumped the ATV while drunk sometime recently.

He slurred to me, "Takin' pictures?!?!"

I had my camera bag over my shoulder but had not removed the camera yet. I was completely confused by his question and say, "Huh?"

I could see he was agitated and I'm was getting concerned. Again he said, "Takin' pictures?!?!"

"I'm camping," I said.

He looked at me like he'd never heard the word camping before and said, "Campin'?"

I said, "Yeah, I'm with the softball people. I'm camping." Then I wave toward the campground.

Then he said, "What's yer name?"

Even more confused I went ahead and told him my name is Ed. He grunted and then turned the ATV around and drove back to the campground. Maybe he put my name on his personal shit list.

After spending a short time at a local art show next to the store I headed back to camp. When I reached their site I looked in toward the owner and his buds and they all waved nice and friendly like and I waved back. Except for my inquisitor, he didn't wave. He just glared. Really, what the hell was that all about? What is going on at the campsite that the thought that someone may document what you are doing would cause you to behave like that?