32 Comments
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Anna Abraham Gasaway's avatar

Love this essay. So relatable and fun! My hobby (our hobby) is going to goth nightclubs and shaking our tails.

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Hahaha! Love it! Thank you, Anna!

Suzi Banks Baum's avatar

There was a famous cork tree in Boston's Arnold Arboretum which generations of schoolkids climbed into until it succumbed to the traffic on it's curved, thick limbs and fell over. Cork has that quality of light buoyancy and frivolity, which you capture so well. I read your essay with that sense of cork being from somewhere and how you are compelled to celebrate it's journey! xos

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Hi Suzi,

That’s such an interesting story and thank you for your comments. I hadn’t thought about the structure of the corks, but I love that connection. I also love Boston. My son just finished four years at Berklee College of Music.

Stephen Turnbull's avatar

This is very relatable. Like you, I have mixed feelings about the gradual advance of the screw-top wine bottle. I like the satisfaction of sweetly drawing a cork, reading whatever might be written on it and setting it on one side to keep or bin (I have a collection, but it is small). On the other hand the risk of a crumb of cork finding its way into the wine is eliminated. Then there are those rather strange "corks" that aren't actually made of cork . . . Cheers!

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Ha! Yes, what are those corks that aren’t made out of cork?

Stephen Turnbull's avatar

I'm not sure what they're actually made of. It feels plastic-y, but is as light as cork and is drawn by a corkscrew, but it doesn't flake. A lot of French wines use it.

Ellen Moore's avatar

So grateful to have met you Andrea. Thanks for sharing your work! This is a really nice piece and I could see those corks falling on her head! Loved it.

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Thank you so much, Ellen!

Michèle Dawson Haber's avatar

That was a fun and funny essay, brava Andrea!

Judith Van Praag's avatar

Ha, ha! I recall someone in the film industry making cork boards or something with her sisters. It seemed such an innocent project, your essay makes me reconsider :-)

I’ve always had a hard time naming a hobby. For creatives, any collection may suit a purpose. Perhaps emptying Smith’s silk teabags, and collecting them is a hobby? I can imagine them as a dress, though.

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

I think you have an essay, Judith! 🥰

Casey Mulligan Walsh's avatar

A thoroughly enjoyable read, Andrea—a little humor is just what I needed today! Oh, those collections for “someday.@ I too have had a few I’ve saved for someday over the years and now am in the stage of finally parting with (now there’s some awkward sentence construction for you!).

And yes, Rachel is a delight to work with!

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Thank you so much for reading, Casey!

Heather Sweeney's avatar

Love this, Andrea!

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Thank you so much, Heather!

Rose Saltman's avatar

I did this 40 plus years ago! Thanks for bringing back the memories.

Vincent O'Keefe's avatar

Enjoyed this post! And surprised to learn that corks may be going out of style. Maybe I'll hang on to a few going forward.

Jerry's avatar

Good story

Carmel Breathnach's avatar

This is great! 👏🏻

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Thank you so much! ❤️

Rebecca Morrison's avatar

So fun! Love it!!! 😍

Laura’s Ramblings and Rantings's avatar

Love this! Proud to have contributed a few of those corks!

Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Hahaha! Right?! Good job!

Kim Smyth's avatar

I have Pinterest pages dedicated to the cork projects I never quite got around to.

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Feb 2
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Andrea Tate / I'll Show You's avatar

Hahaha! Too funny! 😂