An edited version of this article appears in the current Phuket Post

LOOKING back, 'Phuket POST Souvenir Issue No.1' still has plenty of punch. Across the top came the specialties: Business, News, Property, Money, Movies.

''UP go building prices,'' shouted the biggest heading on the front page, while another hinted at what Phuket would be like with a population of one million.

A third asked whether missionaries should be forbidden from converting tsunami refugee camp children to Christianity.

Close to the top, a bright yellow star said: ''New! 20 Baht'' Fortunately the price, like most of the good things about the original Phuket Post of May 6, 2005, has not changed.

The Post began with a burst of energy and has since transformed from a slim 16 pages into a glossy (and newsy) magazine of substance, with Property Plus as the most impressive addition . . . and all still for a crumpled green 20 baht note.

Producing those early issues in the immediate aftermath of the 2004 tsunami was satisfying for us all, even if there were times when we had trouble smiling through and putting a positive spin on Phuket's future.

''Heroes in Masks, Amazing Science of the DVI Teams,'' ''Phuket's hush-hush casino school,'' ''Does Dulwich Matter?'' (the answer: not any more) ''Tsunami Plus Six: Time to Get Back in the Surf!'' ''Let's talk about SEX, the Trade and the Truth,'' made front-page headlines back then.

All over the cover of Issue No. 4 was an extract from a new book by a young Thai author about farang tourists in which the most interesting quote from a grandmother read: ''Pussy and elephants. That's all these people want.''

Fortunately, it was a novel, a work of pure fiction.

Many sad stories of the tsunami occupied space in the early issues and we always balanced those with photos of four newborn bouncing babies every fortnight.

There were just two sections to the Post then: Business and Pleasure.

Life on ''Phuket's smartest newspaper'' was all about looking up and moving on, but also about telling it straight.

Things did have a habit of going wrong, though, back then. The plans for an office to call the Post's own evaporated and the early editions came to life in the living room of my small rented home, in the Phuket City suburb of Sam Kong.

The combination of office and home did have certain advantages. I took the occasional afternoon nap, especially before we had air-conditioning.

Distributors turned up at odd times, day and night, looking for copies of the Post. But it only took me a second to commute from the bedroom to the workplace.

And because the managing editor doubled as the maid, there was never a single complaint about the cleanliness of the bathroom.

There were a few other quirks, too. Every morning, the staff of the Post arrived for work with the thumping songs of an American rock band called No Doubt booming through their ears.

The adrenalin always began flowing quickly, reporting staff and advertising reps always seemed very keen to take assignments outside the office, and it was a whole lot cheaper than buying 12 coffees.

But there was one staffer who looked at me a little oddly when presented with a copy of the No Doubt CD as a farewell gift. Perhaps he thought he'd heard it too often already, or maybe he was a closet fan of classical music.

There were no rules at the Post back then. Warwick Reynolds, leading statesman and shareholder representative among the group of Dr Prasit Koysiripong, Michael Massey and Duncan Worthington, told me I was free to publish whatever I wanted to publish.

The only condition was that there were to be no blacklists or favoritism shown to some, and not to others.

So we tackled some difficult topics and attracted readers who shared a need to know. The island's advertisers, in the wake of the big wave, were a little slower off the mark.

As a result, instead of being paid for my work, I eventually became another shareholder.

The owners have changed since those early days, and fortunately, so has the Post's financial position, along with its appeal to advertisers.

It's quite healthy in every respect now, and considered by many to be the best option around for reaching expat residents and visitors.

Successive managing editors have all taken on the task in almost four years since the Post began, each one doing it his or her way.

For those who enjoy the joke about the vast number of managing editors that the Phuket Post has had, the actual count is a little disappointing.

It's seven, including the current one.

That's not so bad, considering the turbulent times and the impact the magazine has had by giving readers a choice where previously there was none.

That's healthy for any community, and a sign of the island's maturity.

The one remaining mystery is, who was at the wheel the day the rented office Honda Jazz developed an ugly large dent in its glossy paintwork? Nobody ever did own up.

Were those early days good fun? You bet.

Does the Post work? Well here you are, still reading.



Fifty Reasons Why We Love Phuket
Phuket remains very much a special part of Thailand, and that's reason to celebrate. In two parts, we look at the Top 50 delights of the island.

Fifty Reasons Why We Love Phuket I

Fifty Reasons Why We Love Phuket II