Summer is Here: Where Do I Work?

by Chadwick Wood
May 21st, 2010

It's still May, but temperature-wise, summer is just about here in Austin. It's hot, and I now find myself trying to figure out where I should spend my laptop hours.

For the past couple of months, I've kept a steady schedule of either working full days at home, or working mornings at home, until the afternoon heat comes, at which point I go to a coffeeshop. But now it's getting to where even the mornings are getting pretty warm, and my wonderful duplex apartment just isn't the best-insulated. As much as I like spending hours at Thunderbird and Cherrywood Coffeehouse, last summer it started feeling like I practically lived at those places. So as this summer approaches, I'm trying to come up with new alternatives.

First off, how about the library? The Carver Branch of the Austin Public Library is closest to me, and it looks like they have wi-fi, so I'm going to try that out soon. It's probably pretty quiet there, which is a plus, and it'll be a new experience for starters. Can't sip on coffee or tea while I'm there, though. Certainly not an all-day solution, but perhaps part of one.

And then of course, there's coworking. Conjunctured is within biking distance of my place, and Texas Coworking isn't too far away either, but I don't know that I want to drop $250 per month on a work space. At that price, it seems like I could almost consider just getting a fancier/roomier apartment, or just going in with a friend or two on our own space. There is, of course, the benefit from those places of being around other freelancers. It's always good to meet new peers. I might just keep my eyes open for any summer deals...

That's all I have so far. Any readers out there have other suggestions? Non-traditional workspace ideas? Let me know in the comments, or on Twitter.