Meet your vendor.
I’ve always lived in Adelaide, except for the eight months I spent in my mother’s womb. I had a severe brain injury when I was seven and I spent a lot of time in hospital. I was unconscious for a long time. I don’t remember too much about it, but I remember seeing flashing red, green and orange. It could have been the fact that my body was wanting to spark back on, or it could have been the hospital lights.
When I came out of hospital, I had to teach myself to walk again. My mum was really caring and loving. She eventually brought me back to school when I was ready, just one day per week at first.
Even before my injury – even back in kindergarten – I always loved maths and numbers. I love hearing about maths. I love discussing maths! I like squaring numbers and finding patterns. I’ve kept up my interest in maths and it’s always useful.
I worked at Bedford Group for a while, and then I started at The Big Issue last year as a vendor. I’m a very social person and I like chatting to people – not just about maths, but about all sorts of things. Selling the magazine is a good way to chat with people. I usually let customers take the lead. If they ask, “What’s in this edition?”, then I’ll open it up and talk them through it.
If they’ve been a customer for a while, then maybe I’ll have some jokes with them. I have a lot of tongue twisters and some of my customers like them. Try this one: Irish wristwatch, wristwatch Irish. Or this one: Timothy Titus took two ties to tie two tups to two tall trees, to terrify the terrible Thomas a Tullamees.
I love being outdoors. I’m a gardener on days I’m not selling The Big Issue. My gran and I made a flyer and dropped it around, and my gardening business is doing very well. In my home garden, I have Billy Buttons and other Australian plants. I’ve also got a self-watering wicking bed that I built with a friend. I’m growing beetroot, I’m growing spinach and I’m growing lettuce. The bed goes up to about hip height or thigh height. Hip height, thigh height – try saying that as a tongue-twister!
In my spare time, I like doing artwork too. I’ve done a whole range of things – from painting to sketches to printmaking. I am looking for some community activities – I’m interested in board games, fishing… I’m up for a new challenge any day.
I like going to The Big Issue breakfasts on Fridays. It’s basically an invitation to get people out into the community. It’s a chance to chat, to hang out, to talk with the other vendors and to listen.
One last thing: a dot point to encourage people to buy The Big Issue. If you can afford two coffees per week, then try living a healthier life and buy a magazine instead!
Jake sells The Big Issue at Adelaide Arcade, Rundle Mall in Adelaide
Interview by Sophie Quick
Photo by Ben Liew
Published in ed#755