There I am at the end of the table sitting behind a card that says Secretary, but what was I doing there? I was working for a Swiss company dealing mainly with English related business being the only person in the company with english mother tongue. It was a company manufacturing hand tools for all over the world. These were discussed at a conference during the years and the conference was again approaching, This time Switzerland was holding the chair and organising everything. It was the CEE Conference in Oslo, Norway 1968 to discuss safey rules and regulations.

I was asked if I would take the minutes of the meeting. These were the days before dictaphone and such electronic devices, everything was written down manually and my stenography had to be good enough. The conference was held in mainly the english language with 5% French, but I even managed to write the french parts. I was the chosen one, and was asked. Of course you do not say no to a flight to Norway and a hotel for a week with everything included, as well as a few sight seeing trips around Oslo.

So there I was sitting at the end of the desk with all these technical experts. This being more than 50 years ago I am probably the only living person to remember it all today. I think I had more stress writing it all down after returning to Switzerland. I never found out what happened to my notes, but they must have been accepted. I had a look in Internet and discovered that the abbreviation CEE still exists, but have the feeling it has nothing to do with my conference.

It was the time when Mr. Swiss and I were gradually getting to know each other. A year later the conference was being held in London. They asked me again, but I then had a baby bump so that was the end of my career as a conference secretary.