Meet Your Vendor
I’ve been in Glebe all my life. I used to be on Toxteth Road with my dad, and now I live in an apartment that my nan bought. I used to get epileptic fits as a kid. That’s why my nan moved from Kings Cross to where I am now, to be close to the old children’s hospital in Camperdown. They nearly lost me one time because the ambulance couldn’t get through the traffic. I spent a lot of time in hospital as a kid. I couldn’t walk properly, so they had to cut a tendon in my leg and stitch me back up. My movement’s pretty good now, and so is the epilepsy. The doctor took me off my tablets about 12 months ago and I haven’t had a seizure since.
I went to school in Bondi. I didn’t enjoy school; the best time was home time. But I never skipped school – I just didn’t like it much. I loved sport though. I love rugby league, love the Roosters. I used to play cricket for school. I left school when I was 15-and-a-half.
For 20 years I had a job catching the greyhounds at the races for two nights a week. They’d have eight catchers and eight dogs, and our job was to catch the dogs after the races and bring them back to their owners. One night, it was pissing down rain, and I fell on my coccyx bone in front of everyone – but I still got the dog!
I left after 20 years because my dad got sick. He had two strokes. When we took him to St Vincent’s, I knew the doctor – I went to school with his son!
These days, it’s just me. No brothers and sisters. My mum has passed away. She was only 69 when she passed away. When we had the funeral, the chapel there was jam-packed full. You have to be strong, really strong. You get a bit down sometimes.
Me and James have been friends for over 20 years. He sells the magazine in Glebe too, and I would go and sit with him when he was selling. He’s the one who got me into The Big Issue. We were talking about it for years, me joining, and I’d always say, “no, no”. And this time, we were in the pub one night last April, and he said, “I’m not taking no. I’m taking you into the office and you’re signing up.”
If I’ve got mags, I’m out there seven days a week. It’s good having a job close to home, where everyone knows me and looks out for me. I like getting out there and mixing with people. Just to get out of the house for a couple of hours. I get lunch up on Glebe Point Road and they bring it over to me on my pitch, a ham and cheese sandwich. One of the people I sell the magazine to, her son didn’t want this jacket that I’m wearing, so she gave it to me. It’s just a nice mix of people.
When I’m not working, I like going for walks into town. I’m not much of a cook, I like to eat out most nights: go to the pub, play darts, get a pizza.
Steven sells The Big Issue on Glebe Point Road, Sydney
Interview by Mel Fulton
Photo by Brent Lewin
Published in ed#741