Daisy Bell -

A view of a terrace house in red brick with a yellow front door and a double sash window. The house abuts a tall grey concrete wall with a fence above it that cuts off the end of the terrace row and the road. There is small front garden area with two stone gate posts, a very low wall and stone coping to the right with a hedge growing over it, and a taller brick wall to the left leading to the neighbouring house. Daisy is wearing a yellow high visibility work coat and black trousers and boots. She is standing on the pavement with a hand on a gatepost while looking at the 'For Sale' sign placed by an agent called 'Redi Bricks'. The whole scene is hand made at one twelfth scale. — I wonder if I can afford this one?

Hello!

I am Daisy, Daisy Bell, as in the song (I still don’t understand what my parents were thinking!) and I live in the market town of Theraton.

Anyway, since my teens I worked as model, basic fashion catalogue stuff, but now I am getting on a bit I decided it was time to do something else with my life and make some major changes.

Firstly, I decided I wanted to return to study, but not having much of an academic background I couldn’t get a place on the course I was interested in, ‘The History of Art, Architecture, and Design’ unless I could show I was able to do research and essay writing. To do that I decided to research the history of Theraton, the town I am living in, I will probably share some of that research on this blog.

Secondly, I decided it was time to get my own home. I am in my late thirties and I have never lived on my own. As a teen I lived in various shared flats and houses with the other young women I was working with. They all eventually moved out to live with boy friends, or to live nearer a better job, go abroad, that sort of thing. Anyway, I am currently living with a couple of twenty somethings, Fran and Ingrid, in a shared town house rental. Though they are lovely friends I think I am really getting a bit old for a house share. (I did try living with a boyfriend once, only for a couple of weeks before that went very wrong! What is it with men? I can’t see what people see in them!)
I have been sensible with my money (thanks Mum and Dad) and have some savings, and I can afford to put down a deposit on a place of my own, but I also need a more regular income for the mortgage.
That leads to…

Thirdly, I decided it was time to stop modelling, a bit of ‘jump before I am pushed’. Also, as my friend Steve pointed out, I did more agency temping work in admin and telesales then I ever did in modelling gigs. Steve suggested I could look at working with him, and after a brief interview I am now working on a recycling team at the Environment Centre. The Centre is a nature reserve on an ex landfill site on the outskirts of the town, very similar to St Nicholas Fields in York. The Centre picked up the domestic recycling collection contract for the town centre and Lower Theraton area. Higher Theraton is on a hill and not so suitable for the little electric truck and the cargo tricycles we use so the council lorry does theirs and the commercial collections in the town.

So, that is me.
I am researching the history of Theraton, house hunting, and working on the recycling round.
I hope my blog will be an interesting read.