Since my last entry, I have been: 1) enjoying some extreme weather in the United Kingdom (30 degrees Celsius, or 86 degrees Fahrenheit, is considered extreme in the U.K.), 2) working hard on a research-grant proposal, 3) rock climbing, and 4) running—poorly—in a set of league races. My work as editor-in-chief continues, and it has brought me to Cork, Ireland for the annual meeting of the International Academy of Nursing Editors, a group that suffers from the acronym INANE.
This is my first time at INANE, and I was asked to chair an early morning “Town Hall” meeting on hot topics in editing. We covered several topics, including open-access publishing, succession planning for editorial positions, and the training that those new to editing might require. INANE is a truly international organisation, and this meeting, hosted by the Department of Nursing and Midwifery at University College Cork, attracted more than 100 people—mostly, but not exclusively, editors from 16 countries.
This is the first of three weeks of travel. After returning to the U.K. from Ireland, I will spend a week in Taiwan and the following week in Australia, which is where my first contribution to Reflections on Nursing Leadership magazine, the progenitor to my “Hanging smart” blog, was written. Naturally, I intend to send my reflections on these visits.
I rarely visit Taiwan without some hilarious incident, usually at my expense. For example, a few years ago I sent some clothes to the local laundry, which phoned my Taiwanese colleague, whose cell phone is always on speaker, to enquire if I wanted my underpants (“shorts” in the United States) pressed. The secretaries in the open-plan office were unable, despite considerable effort, to suppress their laughter. When the exchange was translated to me, I laughed, too—eventually. I will be surprised if there is nothing to report next week.
For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.
