The family in front of us? NOT intelligent beach-goers. They have towels and blankets and food and coolers and all kinds of equipment set up right at the edge of the waterline.
The rest of us retreat to the giant rocks, knowing that high tide might splash us occasionally, but we are relatively safe on higher ground. The family, on the other hand, moves laterally. Laterally ... as if the waves are going to magically avoid that particular area of the sandy beach.
This, we all know, is bullshit.
Because the family appears to be stupid, no one offers up the suggestion that they move to higher ground where the rest of us are perched.
After the waves hit their towels and blankets, the family slowly starts moving their belongings to the lower rocks, almost joining the masses of more intelligent people. It is painfully obvious that these people have never been to the ocean before today, or, if they have, they do not understand the concept of tidal charts.
The family continues to estimate the height of the waves, an impossible task at this beach. The onlookers continue to eye the family with a sense of curiosity ("How could they NOT know????") and embarrassment ("How many times do they have to get swamped before they realize they ARE the problem?!").
In the end, their towels are soaked, their toys dance in the waves, and their cooler starts to float away. They are, essentially, amateurs. High tide hits, and the family is still half-in and half-out of the high-water line. Perhaps they are allergic to the rest of us who've retreated to higher ground, but they are our fodder, and we professional beach-goers are thoroughly entertained.