Lynn - the dogs love him (Shelties seem totally intrigued by cats), GrayC ignores him, and Jack can't stop watching him. No mad playing yet but I expect it to happen quickly. He and Jack will be buddies, I'm sure. The new guy is settled in enough so that he's running, dashing, skittering and all the other adorable stuff that kittens do. He's been dragging even the dog's big stuffed toys around, growing to himself over the stuggle. I think that once he is allowed out in the screen room, the lizard population will plummet. I predict him to be a little killer so I'll have to keep him in and away from the birds! We found him at www.1-800-save-a-pet.com - a rescue organization that operates all over the US. You put in your zip code to find animals listed near you, then contact the individual rescue place. It's worth some computer time just to check them out. I had a Siamese as a child so I was sort of looking for one. When I saw this Siamese mix with the Big Foot I couldn't resist. I drove up to Jacksonville to get him! If anyone is interested, he has an identical brother and a crazy little sister who is tabby striped in gray and peach. I've never seen a cat with her coloring before and she's just beautiful. Both of the siblings have the toes too. Many of the cats in Key West are polydactyl and are referred to as Hemingway cats . (If he were female, Polly Dactyl would be a great name. Maybe Paulie Dactyl???) They are common enough so that you can even do a search on that save-a-pet site for Hemingway/Polydactyl cats. There was a fluffy black poly cutie listed in Orlando but the foster people never responded to my email about that one. Kate For a picture of Peaches (the sister): Peaches the 6-toed peach/gray tabby/Siamese

Try contacting Verizon or Sprint in your area and get a wireless card referred to as "Air Card" they sometimes work in areas where DSL service is not avaliable and you can take it with you anywhere (love mine and get transfer rates of over 1,000kbps - test speed at - http://www.abeltronica.com/velocimetro/pt/?idioma=uk&newlang=uk ) Not easily networkable though if that is something you are trying to do. We got sucked into Hughes Net last year and had to spend almost $1,000 to get installed since there are trees around and they could not mount on the house - Its speed is OK faster than dial up and works 90% of the time (sometimes rain or cloudy days kick it off) Transfer speeds not even near what they tout on TV. I would only get Hughes again as a LAST resort - you have to get an 18 month minimum plan and it really starts to rack up especially if DSL service may be available to you in 6 mos or so. (You can cancel early for a fee.)

Yeah, not really my idea of 'living' either, dlm. I can't imagine spending all those hundreds of dollars a month for all this stuff. I used to pay $155 for internet/VOIP/cable tv. I thought that was an outrageous amount to spend on these things! I also have a cell phone strictly for emergencies that costs $25/mo. I've since switched to a landline $17/mo (only $8 for the landline but another $8+ surcharges). I need this for security system/fire, incoming calls, and power outages. I use Google Voice (free) for all outbound calls (usually works just fine though certainly not as convenient as just picking up a handset). Switched from broadband to DSL which is half the cost at $30/mo. It usually seems to be faster! As for the tv, it's not something I really enjoy or want to spend my time on. I will use the DVD player when I want to spend my time watching something really good (once I get it set up). Or read, play music or even watch select shows that are available on the net. I am however paying $22/mo for the antenna service at this point (the digital box and indoor antennas I tried aren't working very well). I think I'll be getting a roof antenna installed to rid the monthly fee for that expensive service. I am also changing over to a $100/yr prepaid phone card for the emergency cell (has a $1 daily access fee when the phone is used). So, $8-$10/mo for that instead of $25, reduced by $200/yr. So, down from approximately $180/mo (ridiculous) to $78. Hopefully $56/mo in the near future when I've got an outdoor antenna installed. Boy that sounds good. More like the old days!

If you are running MicroSoft Windows, they offer a free malware cleaner. In fact, Microsoft sends that cleaner out about once a month with other updates; It runs once and then excuses itself. When it runs, it takes a long time for it to scan critical files and locations on your disk. Over a year ago, I converted to Uverse to get the better internet speeds and at about the same or less cost that I was paying for DSL and the old analog phone (voice) service. I was renting 2 lines from the phone company: one for the computer and the other for phones. IN addition, I was paying $240 per year for dial-up internet connection. But with the increased amount of data that flows today and high graphic content, dial-up no longer was practical. Also, software and software updates no longer arrives on a CD of DVD, it is downloaded. Dial-up is too slow and error prone for effective software installations or updates. I chose Uverse when it became available and the sales force was knocking on my door touting all its good points - they did not adequately explain all the changes required. Uverse has been very convenient since it sets up a wireless network within your house. A number of things can be connected wireless PROVIDED they contain a radio to converse wirelessly with the gateway. A PC can connect wirelessly or through the air. The computer needs a wireless card if it does not have built-in capability. (Most newer laptops do have a radio.) Many newer printers have a radio, but the lower end versions may not. I direct connect my printer to the desktop computer with a USB cable, but I can also at the same time, activate its radio and then it can be seen by other computers. The Uverse set-up negates your analog phone connection. Once Uverse is installed, phone signals arrive in digital form and a converter-to-analog is included in the incoming box so that the analog phones continue to work. Here;s the rub. Most 911 emergency calling systems today have locater capabilities for the older dial up phones. That is, the 911 operator is able to locate the phone that is making the call. This is critical in case the caller can not speak, That capability may be negated with a switch to digital phone service. At my location, AT&T assured me that the location feature was available at my phone exchange. The second rub: Depending on what kind of phone you had, some older simple phones did not depend on house current to operate, but ran from the power supplied by the phone company. You could still make a call if your power went out. With Uverse service, that function is handled differently. Part of your installation is a battery box that is plugged into your house power. It keeps a battery charged that can maintain your phone service for about 18 hour. After that, you are without phone service until power is restored. That also means you have no 911 capability after the battery runs down. After that, you will be dependent on a cell phone. For Uverse service, you will need to dedicate one electrical outlet to power the installation. It is recommended that a transient protected extension be used. My gateway can handle 10 channels, i.e., 10 signal sources such as printers and computers. Our typical load is 2 to 4 computers and 2 printers. My original gateway failed early. The replacement unit has ran trouble free for over a year. I have rebooted it only twice during that time: once because power line glitches upset the system, and once when it was shut down for vacation. Because of old telephone cables (outside) and the distance to the fiber optic node, the installer had to use 2 phone circuits to bring my service up to the intermediate speed they had sold to me.