Well the water has stabilized rather mysteriously but I'll take it. Lo and behold he started accepting frozen shrimp tonight - hopefully it doesn't mess up the water cuz I have to leave town for a few days. I was pretty excited and I wanted to feed him like a pound of shrimp but I settled for 4 decent sized prawns. Will feed him a bit better meal when I'm back in town to monitor the water.
Thanks for the updates. I'm so glad he's eating for you, and he seems unbelievably friendly. This is gonna sound a bit cheesy, but I bet he associates you with everything good, and that's why he's so friendly.