Sounds like a computer and a satellite connection should be on the list with the washer. A friend out in the middle of the West Texas desert uses wildblue.net. It can give up to about 750K per second download, half the speed of the lowest telephone DSL (unless you're like me and barely getting that 750K/second speed because they really didn't have any business giving us a DSL account as far away from the phone exchange as we are). This is quite an improvement over dialup.

I'm switching to cable Internet one of these days.

I'm going to listen to the debate and during it clear up the kitchen, pick up around the living room, rearrange my CDs (I need to do one more step in my new system of storing them on a shelf in a shoe rack for it to fit well) and I'm going to clear out my fireplace (it has a brass pot in it now) and put in the mirror and candles. Soon it will be time to look to that side of the room for flickering light, but I don't use it for fires, it doesn't draw well. I discovered that candles look lovely when you burn multiples in there.

I hit a couple of garage sales this morning, but was very careful in my shopping--only spent $5.50. I have been looking for another pepper mill--I found two in brass for a dollar. (Frugal Gourmet, you know that's going back a ways). Found a hurricane lamp to put over one of the saucers on a table where I like to burn candles. I want the extra barrier between the flame and anything on the table.

SRS