Another post where I will mention Tony (you are popular this week)…
We have cubicles at work but they are very low cubicles…the partitions are only maybe, 2 feet higher than the desks. When I sit up straight I can look above everything. The cubes are arranged so that in each group, people have their backs to the center of the group where there is space for smaller tables and some stools. Does that make sense? Anyway, it means there is a lot of space for chatting with people if you turn around and face the center of the cube-hole (yes, I am going to call it that)…but while working I have my back to everyone.
I kind of miss the HCT setup. I sat at a desk in a pinwheel of 4 desks. I could look to my right and talk to Phillip, I could always gaze at Tony, and I couldn`t see Nelson beyond his monitor but if I talked loudly enough he could hear me. Whenever I thought of something funny, or was troubled, or confused, I knew that I could stare at Tony for long enough and eventually he would notice and look over and I could start talking. Mind you, I think I get way more work done here than I did in x509……but I miss that.
I guess I could just go and talk to someone, but when it is about those trivial mundane things like “man I`m craving paneer” or “so if a guy says…”, in the time between thinking it and deciding to get up, I realize that the person I talk to will wonder why I came over just to tell them that and then they will think I am weird. It is not so much the being weird part that I am worried about…more the making other people uncomfortable and interrupting them.
I really do need a random thought broadcasting system for my workplace.