WFH in COVID

It’s an understatement to say that this pandemic is a weird time for everyone. We are communicating entirely through screens, we haven’t left our houses in weeks and our idea of a fun friday night includes a puzzle and a movie. Amongst the stay at home orders, we have also had to learn to work from home – in Matt and my case, in 900 Square Feet.

In our current apartment, we have a small den that one person can use for a quiet workspace so we have been switching off halfway through the day or sometimes scheduling around when each of us has meetings that require a quieter setting. The other person works at our kitchen island (only about 6′ away but separated by a door). Regardless of which location I am set up in, I have figured out all the aspects that surround me to make it a successful workspace, but as Matt and I have switched everyday, there is one where we are polar opposites: lighting.

In my case, I hate overhead lighting and would choose a lamp any day.  I like the glow that a combination of different light qualities bring and overhead light to me feels clinical and harsh. Matt, on the other hand, would prefer to have one overhead light for work. It totally makes sense – it does more accurately replicate an office setting! I suppose if we were labeling our preferences, I would be focused on “form” and Matt on  ” “function”.

Here are some pictures of the different light qualities on each of our work “settings”

So everyday around noon, one of us says “wanna switch?” and without missing a beat we each carry our computer to the other space, but not before changing the light to our own preferences. Since I noticed it, I giggle to myself every time we make the switch and remember that design is so incredibly personal.