Wednesday, August 21, 2013

So I'm reading about a beach, ...

... and there are continual references to "sugar-white" beaches. This descriptor seems to be universal. Nearly every site about this beach uses it.

What a horrible descriptor for sand! Every time I read it, it makes me vaguely nauseous. Imagine a hot field of sugar with seawater running against one side. Imagine that you're going to walk on this hot, wet sugar and swim in the sugar laden saltwater. Imagine how sticky and dirty and uncomfortable this place would be. Grotesque!

58 comments:

chickelit said...

... and there are continual references to "sugar-white" beaches.

Sugar white beaches usually go with gin-clear waters.

White sand beaches are purer SiO2 with fewer "colored" impurities so in a sense, pure sand is like sugar and white bread. As a rule, California beaches are darker complected than Florida and Caribbean beaches.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Pollo said kəmˈplektid.

chickelit said...

I tried to write "conflected" Lem but it wouldn't take.

deborah said...

It seems to be new advertising jargon for white-sand beaches. I hadn't heard it yet.

Freeman Hunt said...

It's gross. They should drop it.

Freeman Hunt said...

Watery sugar sludge.

deborah said...

Three sticky boys to take to the hotel pool.

chickelit said...

Syrup

deborah said...

Salt water taffy.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

They must have tested the word combination. I'd imagine.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Lets see... brown sugar beaches.

Closer to the real thing.

Maybe that's it. People don't want the real thing.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Wait... there are white sand beaches. aren't there?

edutcher said...

There's a scene in "Pirates of the Caribbean" with white sand beaches.

And they really do look that way.

However, you can go to Hawaii and see black beaches, particularly on the north shore of Oahu where they have the surfing competitions.

Of course it's not sand, but volcanic rock and the surfers' SUVs line up on one side of the road and the ambulances on the other.

deborah said...

Also black sand beaches made of pulverized lava.

chickelit said...

When Althouse referred to her countertop being the "color of wet sand" she was actually speaking to a preconception that sand is "beige." In reality, sand has a wide range of diverse colors. There is even a green sand beach on the Big Island in Hawaii. Just like green sugar used for decorating holiday cookies.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

White sugar beaches

White sand.. white sugar.

Close enough?

chickelit said...

Also black sand beaches made of pulverized lava.

Colored by pulverized lava.

Freeman Hunt said...

The Simple Syrup Deluge.

Freeman Hunt said...

Also, kids in advertising should always look happy, never snotty or disaffected.

deborah said...

Hummmph.

What do we think of countertops made of broken glass...set in concrete or clear acrylic? I think it looks really cool.

chickelit said...

Here's a fun geology experiment for kids at the beach: Bring a pair of tweezers and ask them to sort a thumble-full of crystals by color.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Colored by pulverized lava.

No comment.

deborah said...

lol

chickelit said...

Lem, I'm just seeing heterogeneity where you see homogeneity.

Cody Jarrett said...

I like the idea of sugar white sand. It's very pretty. I don't think of it as sticky and certainly not grotesque.


And the glass countertops are cool. I've liked them since I first saw them on This Old House, 10-15 years ago.

Cody Jarrett said...

And who is "we", retinal rage woman?

chickelit said...

And who is "we", retinal rage woman?

Deb obviously likes to work in groups.

deborah said...

The we is the Comment Home community, and it is my shorthand way of asking people's opinions of a given subject.

Cody Jarrett said...

I wasn't sure if she was pulling the editorial "we" because she's on the masthead, or if she was some sort of princess, or if she's talking for some friends.

I figured the editorial we was most likely

But you never know.


Gee Chickie. I think maybe you should start saying "we" all the time. You'll sound ever so much more important.

LOL

deborah said...

I've been jonesin' to go to the beach. Haven't been in a few years.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Lem, I'm just seeing heterogeneity where you see homogeneity.

Ok, Mr PhD.

chickelit said...

Do we have a problem, Cody?

Cody Jarrett said...

Do we have a problem, Cody?

I don't think so. Why do you ask?

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Oh, gaslighting, carry on.

Cody Jarrett said...

I've been jonesin' to go to the beach. Haven't been in a few years.

Why not?

Freeman Hunt said...

The problem isn't that the actual sand would be gross.

deborah said...

The Princess Pat

Haven't been up for it till now. Will wait for off-season prices.

'Night all. Freems, I hope you don't have nightmares of sugar sticking to your sunscreen :)

Cody Jarrett said...

Night Deb.

chickelit said...

I'm out too for the night. I posted too much today. Back to lurk mode tomorrow.

Freeman Hunt said...

Destination guide
Cookbook for local cuisine
Field guides for local wildlife
Equipment for local terrain
Endless printouts of restaurant, attraction, and market recommendations

Bed time.

Synova said...

LOL... the beach at Mary Ester, FL was white sand... looks like snow.

Maybe they would say snow-white beach instead.

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

After a swim and a roll in the sugar sand, you would be like a glazed doughnut.

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

I do like the beach after it snows and the dunes are covered but the only sand is that little patch between the waves and where the surf laps up.

Synova said...

Esther.

Bah.

Synova said...

Baby Powder.

After leaving the beach and before reentering your conveyance... baby powder rubbed on will make all the sand fall off.

Handy.

Aridog said...

White sand ...

Oh, you mean like the ashtray sand in old time fancy hotel lobbies.

Imagine how sticky and dirty and uncomfortable this place would be ...

Pretty fair description of the Yellow Sea at low tide.

Palladian said...

Given the paucity of cane sugar in American foods, the reference to "sugar" might not be understood.

Chip Ahoy said...

The sand at Cancun at the end of the peninsula where the big hotels are, not at the beginning of the peninsula where the houses are, the sand is so perfectly white and so fine that 100,000 granules adhere to each individual body hair so that a wet hirsute man rolled in the sand stands up to appear as Yeti.

I made up that number, probably more like 100.

And on a blistering hot day the sand is eerily cool to the touch.

So you are inclined to loll about in it when overheated out there and even if not so hirsute you still look very strangely coated with extra fine salt.

See? I avoided sugar.

I think the sand is produced by pulverized seashells.

Known Unknown said...

AND IMAGINE WEARING SHORTS WHILE DOING SO!

Freeman, subconsciously channeling TOP.

virgil xenophon said...

Cody@10:18pm/

Yes, I saw those on This Old House also. IIRC they were doing an "eco-friendly" rehab of a home in Austin, Tx., even showed the factory in NJ where the glass was sorted, stockpiled and then manu into countertops. GOD, has it been THAT long ago? Time flies..

virgil xenophon said...

PS: They have some dynamite pure white sand beaches in Negril Jamaica, as well as some great black ones elsewhere on the island--hell, lots of brown sand as well.

edutcher said...

Chip Ahoy said...

The sand at Cancun at the end of the peninsula where the big hotels are, not at the beginning of the peninsula where the houses are, the sand is so perfectly white and so fine that 100,000 granules adhere to each individual body hair so that a wet hirsute man rolled in the sand stands up to appear as Yeti.

They had terrible beach erosion one year ('95 IIRC) and brought in huge slabs of sandstone, which they towed into the surf, to repair the damage. It was funny to see how far out you could walk and still be in waist-high water.

deborah said...

Cody and Virgil, as beautiful as glass countertops are, I can just see them eventuall being the equivalent of pink bathroom tile from the 40's. But they're so pretty, I think I would just take the hit.

Cody Jarrett said...

Meh. If they're done right they should be fine.

deborah said...

But I mean they'll be dated...but sooner rather than later? Anyway I don't care, I'll seriously consider them when I can do it.

deborah said...

Then sometimes I say the hell with it, and consider getting a high-quality laminate. I imagine that could be changed out sooner due to the lower cost.

Freeman Hunt said...

That glass looks good. I wouldn't want to have to take care of it though.

I keep needing to decide on new counters, and I keep putting it off.

deborah said...

From what I've recently read, the kind set in concrete need to be re-sealed periodically, but ones set in clear acrylic don't. Haven't looked that closely.