The title of this musing is a reference (perhaps part homage) to a line in — a direct quote from — the 1990 film Pump Up the Volume. With the main character played by Christian Slater. His alter ego in the film is DJ Hard Harry (a contrast to his introverted self, Mark Hunter, who’s is struggling to exist with finding themself and surviving in the world in the context of 1980s- neoliberalism, conservativism and identifiable elements of early eco-anxiety to name a few). The full quote is I don’t mind being dejected and rejected, but I’m not going to be ashamed about it. Pump Up the Volume…

Amongst many other aspects of life, living in a differently changing world, my experiences with work is promoting some reflecting. I have undertaken a number of different roles across the past three years, effectively/largely transitioning away from the university sector. I have been fortunate that these roles have all focussed on making a difference, with many being community-oriented, and in many ways taking a trauma informed approach to change. I was engaged by an inter-government department project, which was my first role in and around the public sector (I view this quite differently to e…

It has been a minute. For many and varied reasons. Like for many, the last couple years have been difficult. Navigating and working through trauma. Doing life in a changing world. My lived experiences of trauma have been personal, everyday, and situational — in addition to what we might refer to as everyday eco- and eco-social anxiety. In this ever-changing liminal space of life — being a little lost amongst it all, trying to connect dots and re-find myself — and feeling unfulfilled, I want to write things down as part of working through this. A little (or perhaps not) surprisingly, it is the …

Catastrophic flooding inundating areas in NSW for the second time in a month has prompted me to think further on why I continue to find (my own and more broadly) the human/people/social response to such events socially interesting. When I have reflected, mostly in passing, on how I have responded & reacted, I have approached this more through a political lens. For example, in terms of a disruotion in and to the everyday implications of relations of capital. How they disrupt work, how we think about work. How we come together as society. The manifest implications of the pandemic are most ob…