Indeed, just traveled back from AL to Canton (north Atlanta)!
I was hoping there would be someone around Birmingham to help me out this weekend but it does not seem there is anyone there who belongs to this group. If Jim does not mind too much, I'll stop by his place to get the pic programmed. He already helped me with the dongle and showed me his projects. Very impressive!
I only have 1 dongle and 2 LEs so I am hoping to get by without the pickit for this year and plan on getting one next year if I make the jump into smart strings. After seeing what Jim has been doing, it is very tempting and I realize that you need to have a pickit.
For now, I need to spend those 50 bucks in extension cords!
I'll give you an update once the chip is programmed. Thanks everyone for your inputs.