Eew.

The worms are gross.

I thought this was going to be so easy. Badabing, badaboom and presto: compost. Yeah, no.

I should have known I was in trouble when the guy giving the workshop said, "now, your worms are like a 2-year-old. They each batch is different. Some like somethings and other don't. You've got to watch them and take care of them and figure out what your group likes." I was working in my studio tonight (where the worms are at present because it's coolest) and suddenly realized there were an awful lot of little flies. I had checked on my worms yesterday to find several crawling up the sides of the bin. This, I was told, is a bad sign. They want to get away from something. As I looked closer, there they were, little tiny maggots. Eew. I found myself sorting worms and newsprint. Those worms can really scamper when they don't want to be caught. But as I continued I found that the majority of the worms are indeed at the bottom enjoying my coffee grounds and eggshells. It's only a few that are unhappy. So I'm not going to change the whole thing out. I did try to wipe out as many maggots as possible and pulled out things they were clearly not interested in. Beets, some lettuce ends (that's a surprise) and something moldy I couldn't identify. I will check them again this weekend. Let's hope they regulate themselves and stay put. I really don't to have to sort a pound of worms from newsprint. Blech.