thanks everyone for the advice! the newspaper seems like it might be a good idea, i had never even considered doing that. Today I did not turn on the light and the temp has been at about 83 degrees with 52% humidity. he has been much more active too, i came home and he was on his branch, so it was encouraging to see more activity, perhaps a sign that he is more comfortable now and possibly ready to take a mouse. im going to wait until next thursday to feed him again so he can get more used to a schedule. I use aspen snake bedding on top of paper towels as my substrate, if that makes a difference.
I think i will try for another live feeder on thursday, i think a live mouse will stimulate a better feeding response.
Also, i did dry off the mouse before introducing it into the cage, he just did not seem interested.