The Shore Thing

I once described the following conundrum to my therapist. My wife and children are all at least part Samoan and (like most people) they love the beach. I’m obsessed with watching surfing movies, I enjoy being on or in the water, I own a kayak, I walk my beagles along a concrete waterfront, I even love the song Sandy from Grease. But I can’t stand the beach itself because I hate sand. If I’m ever dragged to the beach, I’m wearing jeans and shoes. To find common ground with my family (and most of humanity), I wanted to get over my sand-phobia. My therapist’s response: “Oh god, I hate sand too.” It was probably our shortest session ever. Either way, we’re both in the minority. People love sand. In fact, some people love it so much that they steal it. That might sound weird, but consider this. “Sand mining is the world’s largest extraction industry because sand is a main ingredient in concrete, and the global construction industry has been soaring for decades. Every year the world uses up to 50 billion metric tons of sand, according to a United Nations Environment Program report. The only natural resource more widely consumed is water.” And when resources are in demand, you can bet not everyone will play nice in the sandbox. Scientific American: Inside the Crime Rings Trafficking Sand.