Walking or reading?

Ah, a new unsafe activity...

I was driving home tonight, driving down a 2-lane road with not much of a shoulder, a road with many cars, busy, at the end of the work day. A man was walking on the side of the road. He was (properly) walking facing traffic. He was walking. He had a briefcase by his side, and in his other hand he was holding an open book. His feet were wandering down the road. His eyes were on his book, reading, paying no attention at all to the ground under his feet or to the cars around him.

I'm not sure why I was surprised to see this, but I was. Somehow, mixing walking and reading a book doesn't make much sense to me. I'd say his behavior was a bit odd, wouldn't you?