New found fame in death

DVDs of dubious origins featuring the music videos of Michael Jackson are once again the "hot sellers" following the singer's death on June 25.

It reaffirms the notion that an artist or artiste is usually worth more in death. But the intense media spotlight on Jackson, his sudden demise at the age of 50, his children and family and seemingly bizarre lifestyle, has created a new and young fan base.

Seldom is there an entertainer whose popularity transcends so many different generations.

Rural rhythms

I came across this lady and her brood of four while on an overnight camping trip at the upper reaches of the Kiulu River along the Crocker Range. 

This Kadazandusun ethnic family were just returning home from harvesting fruits including bambangan (a type of mango, usually to be pickled or used for cooking) and naturally growing vegetables such as wild ferns locally known as pakis.

After carrying the heavy load for more than a kilometre to the family simple wooden house, she would carefully pack the produce and hitch a one hour ride in a van or four-wheel-drive vehicle to sell them at the weekly tamu or traditional farmers' market at Donggongon town in Penampang district. Just like what her parents had done.

For some of Sabah's rural folk, their rhythm of life remains unchanged.

Fishy business

Meet Ahmad Jais Inil. He wants to capitalise on Sabah's reputation as a seafood paradise.

Those sitting in Sabah coffee shops would have likely experienced 'mobile vendors' hawking everything from pirated DVD movies to Brietling, Omega andRolex watches to sunglasses to wallets and belts.

Ahmad was taking the same business approach but his wares were dried scallops, sotong (cuttlefish) and sea cucumber. I bumped into him as he was replenishing his stocks at a coffeeshop near my office where he was packing some dried scallops that he would sell at about RM30 per kilogramme.

An electrician by profession, Jamil has laid wires and cables in office complexes in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. But he gave it up to get to started in the seafood business.

So much for capitalising on a good thing.

Learning young

Like thousands of other Malaysian children, these boys were on a one week school break.
Unlike most of their counterparts however, their holidays were helping their parents to market the produce from their kebun or orchard to operators of these roadside fruit stalls somewhere between the northern Sabah towns of Kota Belud and Kota Marudu.
In this case, their wheel barrow was loaded with tarap, a fruit similar to jackfruit. For the children's efforts, the fruit stall operators will pay between RM1 and RM2 each and turn around and sell them for double that amount.

Retail therapy

I was driving from Kota Kinabalu to my hometown of Sandakan recently when I dropped by at Pekan Nabalu, a hamlet along the road to the Kundasang highlands. It was tamu (farmers' market) day and there was more bustle than the usual travellers and tourist crowd browsing through the myriad of handicrafts and souvenirs on sale.
And then I spotted this man having a feel of home-made parang (machete). He took his time holding the machete while he and the vendor had a long chat. No one appeared to be in a hurry.
For rural communities, the tamu is more than just a market. It is a time to socialise, catch up with relatives and friends and then perhaps sell or buy a thing or two.
Now that's to me is the right kind of retail therapy.