I don't suppose I'll ever get used to how very nice the food is at the Google offices. Dennis eats there daily and still raves. But today we had seeded croissants with jam (plum, pineapple-lemongrass, raspberry), milky-sweet porridge, and fresh-squeezed blood-orange juice. Not so bad at all (although Dennis sighs that he misses the hot breakfasts in Kirkland).And then Joey and I got the grand tour of the office.
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| The view from the top floor of the office |
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| Every floor of the office has these little privacy pods, where visitors can go to make a phone call or curl up to work. |
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| Taking the preferred route from floor to floor. Dennis says he goes out of his way to use these poles, so I'm not sure that they're actually the time-savers they're advertised to be. But man, they're fun. |
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| One of the many common areas. This jungle-themed room used to be used as a meeting space until the engineers realized that talking through greenery makes conversation somewhat difficult |
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| Hanging in the play room. |
I got to meet a few of Dennis's coworkers. One, in particular, has been really kind in offering advice and help; he got down on the floor and played with a robot toy with Joey for a few. Then, as a parting gift, he gave Joey a little pot with sunflower seeds to plant. He said it had been sitting on his desk for a couple of years so the seeds might not sprout, but I don't think Joey cares. He was so taken with fun-man-with-robot that he held fast to that little pot and didn't set it down until two hours later, when I showed him how to add water and plant the seeds.
This afternoon, after the kids had lunch and Ella was back at school, the boys and I walked over to the community center. Most of the libraries in Zürich have an annual fee, but the little children's library housed in the community center is free for nearby residents. I was going to let Dennis figure out the system first, but the library is only open for a couple of hours each week, during work hours. So I gathered my courage and gave my German a try. I got through the part where I requested and signed up for a library card, and then I did my best to explain that I have a seven-year-old daughter who is just learning German, and could I have a book that is interesting, but...shoot. What's the German word for "easy?" So I just said "easy" and plowed ahead. Bless that kind librarian, she listened to me fumble and search for words, showed me some perfect books, and then said, oh, and by the way, "easy ist 'einfach.'"
You know, that's a little embarrassing, but I can't tell you how much I appreciated the chance to try speaking to someone without him immediately switching to English or, occasionally, French.
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| It takes two trains, a bus, and a long hike through the Hauptbahnhof: shopping isn't trivial. |
But IKEA on a weekday evening is so much nicer it is on a Saturday. I had fed the kids before we went, so we dropped Ella and Alex off at the staffed play facility in the store and then Dennis and I had a quick dinner together at the cafeteria. Joey had fallen asleep in his stroller, so it occurred to us that, with two kids gone and one unconscious, it was likely the closest we'd get to a date in a very long time. So we added a celebratory bottle of wine to our tray of fries and chicken nuggets.
On the way home, apropos of nothing, Ella mentioned that was going to be in a play. Pardon? Oh, yes: they've been practicing every day. Ella gets to play the part of the little girl. It's her job to play quietly in the corner and then come out and do a little dance every once in a while.
Now, tell me, how do you keep a straight face when your daughter tells you that? When we got home I checked her school schedule and, sure enough, on the night of February 8, there's a play performance at 6:00. I'm sure Ella's performance of "little girl" will be inspired. In fact, I might go so far as to say she's been preparing for this role her whole life.
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