Desperately seeking ergonomy
Once upon a time, long ago, I went to stay with some relatives. A vacation, in family, where I learned to play rudimentary chess, care for a broody hen and fish in narrow streams. As well, I learned that not every request should be taken at face value, so this trip ranks up there on the curve of things we should learn before leaving home for good.
In one of the barns, I found a pingpong set, and with the intensity of a child that had no idea what this might be, I immediately began pestering my relatives (busy farmers) to set up this new toy and teach me how to play. With the patience of busy farmers, I was sent off to roam from door to door around the community, in search of a split level table that could be assembled with a left-handed monkey wrench and some elbow grease. You can guess the rest.
However, some things are left in our “to be found someday” list, and this evening I found the split level table. We were touring the “fat office” store, and there it was, on sale. An addition to our home scriptorium, in combination with the Balans chairs we’d added some months ago. You see, someone around here complains of neck pain (I rather believe it is “pain in the neck” syndrome) after using a laptop for too long at a time.
The table is split, and one section pivots to hold a laptop at an angle. The whole thing can be raised to a suitable height, and in context, it might just work. There’s a doubt in my mind, though, because the whole setup is now in place before the television. That might be a sign that sore necks occur when people using laptops are also watching TV across the room, at an angle. However, my training is not in ergonomics, so I’ll have to wait and see. Not wait and feel; I am not experiencing chronic pain while using a laptop.
In any case, should I decide to try out the new apparatus with a laptop, I won’t have to leave home.
