We have a tree house!
Sometimes it’s nice to take a break. That’s why every hackerspace needs a tree house! On top of our new electronics workbench (to be featured at a later date), sits a loft adorned with artificial turf. We can now touch grass without going outside into the noxious mid-summer air! The loft features a plush couch, a CRT television for all your retro gaming needs and a bookshelf housing fiction and non-fiction alike. Matt Machado, who is also our newly appointed president, directed the project. He explained that structure of the new electronics workbench and tree house consists of two industrial shelving units like you would find in Costco and steel beams laid out horizontally. “It is a really cool perspective to look down into the space either back towards the kitchen or towards the main area,” said Machado. He even said that he fell asleep on the couch the first time he used the new space. Our first treehouse was built during the early days of Hacklab 2.0 on Queen Street. It provided a high vantage point over the classroom and were the best seats in the house during presentations. We had discussed reviving the tree house for a while, but with the limitations of our current space we deferred. Luckily, our newly assembled electronics bench area presented the perfect opportunity to build up and reclaim space for relaxation. I spent some time up there hidden away with a full vantage point of the lab. As other members worked away on their projects, I lounged in the new space writing this very blog post. Sometimes it’s nice to be above the chaos even if it’s good chaos.