When I was an intern at a couple of English publishing companies a few years ago I think I took for granted just how much space the offices provided. This may seem like a rather peculiar statement but there really was a huge lack of cubicles. You could see out the windows all day instead of having to look up what the weather was doing on weather.com!
It seems odd that considering how much space the US has in comparison to Britain, (especially when it comes to the Cities) that British office life is wholly more pleasant. I've never had anyone at work offer me a cup of coffee in the middle of the day, but in England I was getting asked if I wanted a cup of tea every ten minutes...and I was the intern! surely I should have been offering to make tea for them?
Anyway, the whole point is that as I sit here writing this I am staring at weirdly padded grey walls without an iota of direct sunlight. I'm sure I could fashion some kind of mirrored device to reflect sunlight into my cubicle, but I think that would take quite a few mirrors and possibly the help of McGiver...who rather annoyingly is nowhere to be found.
Until the Office as a whole (whether it be mine or anyone Else's) embraces the idea that letting people have a glimpse at the world outside we will never realize that far from making us unproductive, it will instead make us keep the will to live ("I can see the sun! I can see it!")
To all you fellow rat racers staring and blank grey walls and wishing for a window, I say demand a 5 minute break every couple of hours to go outside and rejoice that the ever present grey doesn't stretch to the world outside (well, i suppose unless it's raining).
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