My home internet frustrations

Y'know, I really hate my internet connection at home. Let me 'splain. First off, I right now rent from my roommate, so he owns the place, and all the decisions about the home are his, and all the bills are in his name. Therefore, everything hinges on whether or not he pays them. With most people, this would not be much of an issue, but twice in the year I've lived here the internet has gone dead on a weekend he's been away simply because he didn't pay the bill on time. God only knows how many times it's happened when he has been around, and I just haven't been the one to catch it. Then there's the fact that it's Comcast. They're moderately sporadic in their own right, so there's another point of failure. Then there's the cable modem we have: crap. I'm sure our latest problems have been a direct result of the fact that the modem is a steaming hunk of poo encased in blue plastic. Then there's our wireless internet. I have a wireless mouse, which tends to interact negatively with the wireless internet, and ends up with a crappy signal, but I also have a USB receiver, which has a hard time recognizing that it's even there moderately often. So, approximately half the time, I have no connection to the internet when I turn on my computer, and I have to run through each of these points of failure to try to trace what the problem might be this time. I almost have Comcast on speed dial lately. And yes, I do intend to use Comcast as my internet provider when I move (unless RCN is available), but I will pay them on time, and I will avoid the wireless internet for the time being, thereby eliminating many of my frustrations.