David Goodwin spent years working the graveyard shift at his local service station in the outer suburbs of Melbourne. The grungy work quickly took over his life (R).

He took the job to support his university studies, but working overnight made study impossible and soon the work took over.

From his brightly lit perch behind the anti-jump wires, David saw a collection of very strange people come through the auto-doors.

There was the man dressed as a giant bee, a woman who offered to pay for her fuel with a half-eaten pizza, and a psychotic man covered in blood. There were self-appointed wizards and speed-addicted truckies, as well as football hooligans who loved singing.

The unusual work changed David from a shy and naive teenager into someone with more street smarts, but it also thwarted his true ambitions for years.

Further information

SERVO is published by Hachette.

Content Warning: This episode of Conversations contains discussion of drug use.

This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris.

It explores gritty cities, grungy, writing, books, dreams, psychedelics, shrooms, mushrooms, travel, strange jobs, odd jobs, Melbourne's underbelly, memoir, origin story, finding yourself, young men, growing up, raising boys, forging your own path, shiftwork, student job.

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