From the sublime to the ridiculous

Nottingham City Council has created wildflower areas in Woodthorpe Park, and they are beautiful. The park has played a pivotal part in my recuperation; a place to walk, rest and observe. I assess my fitness by whether I can get up the hill without stopping.

Speaking as a resident, I'm impressed with the City Council. They're good at doorstep recycling, and even collect bulky items. They keep parks and gardens nice and they lay on festivals and free stuff over the summer. They have shipped a load of sand into the Square and created a beach area. Great for kids.

Some employees speak less highly of the Council. I was talking to someone who recently moved into their new HQ building. He says it's swish but has ridiculous rules:
- The carpet is colour-coded and staff can't walk on certain colours
- Employees are not allowed to keep food in the fridge
- Eating at desks is banned; you have to go to a special room, even to eat a mid-morning banana or a bag of peanuts.
- If you hang a jacket on the back of your chair a floor-walker will confiscate it.
- You can't leave a bag under your desk, you have to book a locker for the day.
- People whose special needs require a lowered or raised desk can't sit with their teams but get ghettoised together in a different area.
He said adhering to all these rules wastes alot of time.

This all seems a bit barmy to me. If rules are seen as arbitrary or pointless they alienate the workforce. Speaking as someone who's fallen foul of clear-desk policies in the past I think such measures discriminate against creative people who tend to be more messy.