Today’s Berkshire Eagle carried a curious story about an unhappy boyfriend who spray-painted unflattering messages about his ex-girlfriend on trees, rocks, and in the restrooms at the October Mountain State Forest. Breaking up is hard, but this guy’s reaction is tough to figure out.

To begin with, this was no out-of-control teenager whose brain hasn’t fully developed and maybe had a bad experience with a tree at summer camp.

According to the news story, this 46-year-old man was in Central Berkshire District Court yesterday facing charges of vandalizing property and malicious destruction of property.

Okay, so maybe he was upset and didn’t use his best judgment. Except that the spray-painting has been going on for a year. What did he think he was accomplishing?

Credit for the arrest goes to the local environmental police officer who finally tracked him down, using fingerprints, tire tracks, and “other evidence.” At some point he figured out who the graffiti was being directed at, and linked that to the defendant. At one point, he even came across the defendant in the woods, who claimed to be out picking mushrooms. After he left, more fresh graffiti was discovered.