2nd floor spy

August 24, 2011
Having a window office at work has its perks.

#1. There is this perceived higher social standing amongst your peers. It really boils down to the fact that you're either someone important or that you've been there a long time. In my case, I'm still a peon but have put in my dues I suppose with eight years.

#2. You can see what the weather is doing. This really comes in handy for surprise rain or snow storms.

#3. You get to watch things happening along the Jordan River. Arrests, medical emergencies, drunks wandering around, people walking their dogs, etc.

#4. One time a bird flew into my office window. Scared the bejeebers out of me.

#5. You get the benefit of extra light and warmth, which comes in handy in the winter after a long holiday weekend when the heat gets turned off. This benefit sort of backfires on you in the summer though when the air conditioning has been off all weekend.

#6. The view definitely beats looking at the ugly, depressing, gray cubicle walls.

#7. You only have neighbors on two sides of you.

#8. I have a spare shelf to put junk on. I really should decorate it with plants or pictures but after awhile you can start to see how artsy piles of papers, reports, folders, and to-do lists can be.

#9. Everyone else wants it. Duh. (That was Jeff's reason... we both are lucky enough to claim office windows.)

#10. And finally, the best reason, I get to sneak a peek at my kids playing outside during recess. Prior to our office reconfiguration, I was directly above Cole's playground. I could always tell if it was my kid crying or someone else, which did have it's drawbacks when Cole was having a bad day and I had to keep working. But after the move, I now get to spy on Pearl in their new outdoor classroom. It's fun to watch them from afar when they have no clue they're being spied on. Their creative imaginations are fascinating... as is the social world of 4 and 5 year-olds.