Ubuntu wifi dead *again*. Says I'm connected, but no wifi whatsoever :-(

As the subject line says, my wifi says it's connected, but trying to open a web page or video says the absolute opposite. Had absolutely no wifi problems with ubuntu forever. Then, it just started petering out. I would disconnect the wifi and restart it, and it would work fine for a while. About a month or so ago, I did an upgrade, but like an idiot, I did a *full* upgrade with a whole new kernel, etc. Once I did that, my wifi died completely. I was originally using an internal wifi nic while all that was going on. I actually ended up removing the internal nic, and getting a USB adapter. After a little fooling around, I got it workin just fine. Fast forward to a couple days ago, and now my wifi says it's connected, my wifi icon is lit up like a christmas tree, yet, for all intents and purposes, I literally have no wifi whatsoever. I hooked up my phone via usb tethering for wifi, and I've scoured webpage after webpage. I've watched I don't know how many videos, I've typed I don't know how many commands...and here I am. I *did* find a page where a guy said if you have connectivity checking enabled, to disable it. I did so, and my wifi came back in full force, for about 2 days. Now, I'm back to square one with no wifi. According to my computer, I have wifi. That is, until I try to use said wifi...then it's a whole different story :-/