SquirmyandSmelly

Look at all this stuff! Banana peels and cauliflower cores and pepper seeds and damp teabags... It all needs to go somewhere, but I can't bring myself to dump it all in the trash, the same trash as the junk mail and used kitty litter.

Somehow, the idea has gotten lodged in my brain that organic matter from food waste should go back into the food chain.

Before I became a condo-dweller I tried keeping a composter in my back yard. Filling the bin was easy, but keeping the contents balanced was not. In the summer the aroma was noticeable. Would the neighbors complain? Would buzzards start to land on top, since it smelled like death?

When I moved I was relieved to pass my composter on. But where to put all the scraps? Worms. The marketing material looked great. Just feed them apple cores and banana peels and they will squirm around happily in some out of the way spot.

They started out in the kitchen until the fruit flies made a permanent black cloud in the corner and orange mold started creeping out the sides. The worms were fine, but their home wasn't.

If I was really good at worming, maybe it wouldn't be so smelly and buggy. Right now, it's in the garage. The worms are still wiggling, even after a few cold snaps.

They seem to have a limitless appetite for coffee grounds, tea bags, and shredded junk mail. The odd thing is that I have become quite fond of them. They are actually kind of cute in a pink, slippery way, and I find myself talking to them when I empty out my scrap bin. Sounds like the makings of a movie - "Talks with Worms".