Posted by Snow in 
One thing I keep seeing as I trawl waste dumps and recycling stations is a lot of barely worn office equipment of various sizes and shapes. A lot of this stuff is not even worn, it just outlived its usefulness as another business closed down.
These types of finishes tend to wear badly and the laminates crowd the landfills more and more as the first generation of flat pack furniture hit the curbside. But why spend the weekend opening cans of paint finish and sanding when almost new condition portable desk equipment is practically yours for the asking? Freecycle must have a ton of this stuff.
One thing people need now more than ever is a portable workspace that can accommodate a keyboard or laptop. My mom’s backyard has painful wrought iron furniture, ungainly wicker, and no place to sit with a laptop at all. But at 7 a.m. during heat waves, my apartment building’s pool is the coolest place in the valley.
Why no good options? Parks have poured concrete benches that practically beg popping an Advil before the back pains sets in. Coffee house wireless use had impractical noise and people factors for serious concentration. So why not scrounge your own portable workstation? It makes a great gift and probably every home could use one for guests.
But it’s got to be all weather friendly and take beating in unsure terrain like forest floor, beach grit, and backyard critters. Most thrown away desks just need a new top slab. There are also a lot of very durable plastic legs and floor leg ends that look very beach-worthy. A lot of this material looks temptingly like the beginnings of a home workstation.
And when at the beach, I see a lot of people squinting at their computer screens in the sun, awkwardly moving their computers perilously close to the sand. Why not re-use some of the plastic kid’s toy components and fashion a durable backyard or beach workstation that can serve for moments of portable productivity?
How often have you wished you had about five more square feet in volume for a place to get some computer work done that doesn’t exist in your home? or stopped by that perfect roadside or trail spot, wishing you had a chair and desk to get some real creative thought processes happening? This can happen in a green way.
And when I approach the coffeehouse sometimes there is a huge noise pattern of screaming blenders, ankle biters, and pounding oversize chess pieces. And I won’t even start about the Irish guys talking about their wild weekends back in Dublin. That’s a nice time for a portable desk and chair to get some alone time in a quiet space.
While home remodel magazines have beautifully laid out projects using fresh lumber and expensive tools, how difficult could it be to scrounge the materials and basic components of a backyard workstation? And why not enjoy summer outdoors while getting some work done? Wireless laptop use and expanded battery life mean the nearest coffeehouse workstation is steps from the back door.
RSS Feed
Have you seen officedesigns.com’s eco-friendly, green gallery? Everything is recyclable and gorgeous. Best price I’ve seen yet too!
Well well I will check it out thanks for the tip.