The Disturbing Thing I Saw in a Tyler, Texas Parking on Tuesday

This past Tuesday, I saw something in a Tyler, Texas, parking lot that made me wonder if there was a potential danger. More than occurred to me at the time.

I had decided to go by Taco Bueno after work, as I was having one of my intermittent bean burrito cravings. I got my food and decided to eat in the vehicle. Since it was late afternoon and there was still plenty of sunlight,  I drove around to look for a shaded parking lot for my impromptu car picnic.

I pulled into a spot in the Times Square Parking Lot under a tree, facing Rice Elementary. No other cars were nearby, and I began eating while listening to the radio.

About ten minutes later, a pickup truck of a common make and model pulled into the parking lot and parked two spaces from where I was parked.

I won't get into more specifics regarding the vehicle, in case what happened next was simply one of those strange situations that life presents to us sometimes. And honestly, perhaps the person in the truck was simply having a hard day--we've all been there.

But here's what happened:

The person driving the vehicle who parked two spaces away from me pulled in in reverse, so the driver's side was closer to my vehicle (which is not the one pictured in the photo from Google Maps.)

The driver glanced over, opened the truck door, and got out.

I couldn't tell what they were doing at first, as the truck door was still partially covering their body. I figured they were just rearranging something in the truck or were about to go into a job they may have in the area.

But then, I saw the person start to undo their jeans, partially facing my vehicle, and relieve themselves in the parking lot while looking in my direction.

And I was the random bystander doing my best to NOT observe, but they were so close. My car was parked where the gray one in this photo is, and the truck pulled in where you see the red marker.

There are way worse things they could've done. Also, if we'd been in a more rural area that would be one thing. But here we were, in broad daylight in a public parking lot across the street from a school. Furthermore, we were in the middle of town. Why not drive to a nearby convenience store or any public business?

When I finally realized what they were doing, I immediately pulled out and left quickly, just in case, while they watched me drive away.

Look, it's not like someone pulled a gun or I watched or was subjected to an attempted kidnapping or anything. At the same time, I just couldn't believe someone would do that in such a public setting in the middle of the day.

I told a friend about it and they said they were worried this could be a form of 'casing,' or that it was some kind of a signal where applicable. I find that hard to believe, given the time of day and area.

What do you think? Have you been in a situation like this one that was concerning to you?