I work out of a newly built office building located in the downtown area.
The building is large, modern and constructed mostly out of glass.
I am fortunate to have a corner office on the tenth floor. I have a really beautiful view. For safety reasons, the windows are not able to be opened. There is no way to bring in any fresh air. The glass is tinted to deflect the sun and prevent the interior from heating up. However, the outdoor conditions still impact the indoor temperature. During the summer, the glass becomes very hot and causes the offices to feel warmer. In the winter, when the outside temperature plummets into the negatives, the glass is cold. The building is entirely temperature controlled, but none of the management team has access to the thermostat. Control over the indoor temperature and the heating and cooling system is managed by the corporate offices. Those offices are located on the opposite side of the country. Everything is set according to the date on the calendar rather than what is going on with the weather. Sometime in May, the air conditioner starts up and provides non stop cooling. Even if it’s especially chilly weather, there’s cool air pouring from the vents. I often need to bring sweaters into the office to keep warm. At a specific point in the fall, the system switches into heating mode. The weather might still be hot and humid, and yet there is heated air flowing into the office. We run fans and sweat. It’s difficult to accomplish my workload.