Please Bookmark a Landmark Oasis

mGf Yan must be pretty proud this morning as Jan 14, 2007 marks the new/s destination of the Borneo Post on Sunday as The Sunday Post, with the Sarawak Chief Minister doing the honours at its official launch. Yes, you are advised to bookmark www.theborneopost.com but Desi declares this promo is not compleatly done out of altruistic motivation.

Besides, national interest compels us from the Peninsula to know more of what's happening in Sarawak and Sabah -- these two States "seem" like distant cousins to us escounced in a continent more twinned with Singapore than what were formerly the exotic Borneo territories romantically famed through Raja Brooke, et al (Remember a bugger hyde-ing out @kennysia.com? and yes, the headhunters. I confess I find some aspects of S&S intriguing, and the tongues and nuances of Sarawkians and Sabahans mystique, akin to the belly dancers of Egypt and the cowboys&shepherdgals and moonshiners of the www, though I believe the residents dare would like to throw some pies, or hambuggers, at my face for such metaphors.

Okay, they sometimes look regal and relaxed to the point of sporting heavenly s-miles on their childlike faces. Is this goode recompense, my dears? Putera dan Puteri of The Land Below the Wind, Where the deer and the antelope steal play...

Today it's also my pleasure to report that Three Buggers, Ooops, Bloggers! -- Warren Lau, Phyllis Wong and YL Chong, aka or flamed as fishtail, yan and desi, the hoRsts respectively @julyfishtail.blogspot.com, yantouch.wordpress.com and ah, the lust you have to seek it ooouch!:) -- are also launching a Leisure page at that recommended destination.

The column is titled "Times and Chimes"; I give my ER the Rationale (Jest as I often demand of my readers, mousey wan oso cun, remember!) , but I await the maiden piece from mGf, and I think she's tied up Somewhere, beyond the South China Sea.

~~~~~~~~~

Why Times and Chimes?


When Sunday Post co-writers Phyllis Wong, Warren Lau
and I were teamed to start a new Leisure page, I put
on my thinking cap to arrive at two names in the final
shortlist. It's either "Times Wordwhile" or "Times and
Chimes".

I conducted a straw poll among several buddies and
concensus was for "Times and Chimes", chiefly because
there is Rhyme, and also the alternative was quite a
mouthful in contrast.

My case for "Times Wordwhile" was centred on the play
on words -- "worthwhile" and for the literary-minded,
(William) "Wordsworth" who is among my favourite
poets. But some critics counter that it's "elitist"
and may not go down well with newspaper readers,
though this point goes against my inclination as a
writer towards "adventurism".

The final settlement on "Times and Chimes", besides
its poetic sound winning it instant premium, is also
anchored on telling what this new column is all about
succinctly.

It's about any individual's life worth puttig down in
words -- with its ups and downs. We cherish the high
moments in our life's journeys, and such episodes are
easily shared with fellow humankind as joy is a good
currency to spread around. But life is never a
complete joyride, so many of us have hit certain low
points -- even suicidal moments! -- we would rather
forget and keep private. But sometimes it does the
individual a lot of good to share his/her down times
too, for unburdening the grief into the public domain
is also therapeutic, and burden shared is burden
lessened.

The A*team of this column hopes to welcome our
Esteemed Readers to contribute narratives of their
unique Times, especially sharing the ringing sounds of
the Chimes -- maybe with the arrival of a couple's
first baby, their recollection of First Date perhaps,
or the humble RM100-a-table wedding banquet as opposed
to high-media primed million-dollar dinners. Often the
rhythm of the heart must echo the sound of the chimes,
and the human spirit will hear, and listen,then soar
with contentment. ~~ Desiderata-YLChong