Workspace Orientation

"When a building needs a lot of space they build vertically...my room has a high ceiling, so that's what I did, I designed a desk which was under my bed".
-Joel Vardy, 17 year old student

It would appear as though Joel took a hint from the European ghettos of the Middle Ages, when Jews confined within walled off parts of town would build upon the tops of older buildings to accomodate their growing population. To walk the alleyways is reminescent of walking through a deep ravine...the sunlight barely peeking through.

Tonight we discussed the different set-ups of our workspaces and how their effects on our work habits; how differently they enabled us to achieve optimum accomplishments in our daily tasks. Ironically, Lifehacker.com published an article about this very subject and readers have submitted thier own examples of how they cope with limited area or have revamped it to meet their needs. These examples can be seen at http://www.flickr.com/groups/lifehacker-workspace-showandtell/.

Coming up with an original redesign when you're limited by space, location or company/spouse's dictates. Were it the desires of most of us, our desks would easily become an all encompassing "Command Center", with everything perfectly placed and at our fingertips. Multi-screen displays, surround sound and a kegerator within arms reach allowing us to multitask to our hearts content...be it work, play or just a little bit of both. To be honest, most of us would just be happy to have our own little place of solitude where we can accomplish the goals we have in place for ourselves or by another. When we're they're, we just want to be comfortable enough so as not to be stiff at the end of the day but not so much where we doze off for the better part of the afternoon. For some of us, just to have room to set a pile of papers or a book to scan from while at the computer is enough. For others it's all about a room with a view, whether that's photos tacked to the cubicle wall or a glimpse out the window every so often to check on how the squirrels are doing.