A week later (if you ignore my posting dates)

A week later, Abby and I opened up the bin.

I already noticed a few rookie mistakes -- putting all the trays on top, even though the top two were empty. I guess I'm supposed to stack them to the side until I need them.

Mold. There's mold everywhere in the working tray. Wow. Have I mentioned I'm quite allergic to mold? This stuff didn't bother me much, but I'll admit, Abby and I kept our distance.

Some things look good -- I see worms in and among the ort. Some things smell good -- as in I don't smell anything. For good measure, I had Abby add some grapefruit remains -- those always smell nice (words that may come back to haunt me).

Another good sign -- but first let me explain something. There's the base -- nothing goes in the base except for excess liquid that drains down to it. Then there's the first working tray with the coir bedding, the worms, and the first layer of food with newspaper covering it. At some point in the last week, (not pictured), I also added some food and a newspaper cover to the second working tray. It seemed the right thing to do -- the first working tray seemed jam-packed with wormness.

Sooooo, the following picture is of the second working tray being lifted in the air by me while my trusty Abby takes the shot. If you look closely, you can see worms hanging through the mesh. This is a good sign! This means some worms are migrating up to the next level -- it works! (Yes, you can also see mold -- I'll have to check further on this, because it seems excessive.) But it's working! It's working!

[If you want to see the worms in all their close-up goodness, click on the pictures and they'll open up much, much bigger. It's up to you.]