Doc was right
Doc Searls said “And if nothing else works, unplug your cable modem for an hour or two. It’s a piss-on-a-spark plug solution, but it works.”
Well, we unplugged the cable modem last night, and the linksys just to be sure, and plugged it all back in 12 hours later. Sure enough, I got online first time, and have had no hiccups yet (knock on wood). Thanks Doc!