Federal Pacific

Ever heard of Federal Pacific?  I never had either until the breakers in my house started shutting off an refusing to turn back on.  I had an electrician come over last night to take a look and his exact words were "oh yeah, it's cookin' in there."  Great.  Apparently, Federal Pacific breaker boxes are huge fire hazards and mine is ready to go at any minute.  The proposed fee for fixing this problem a mere $1100.

This is potentially the inside of my box

WTF.  Welcome to real home ownership. 

So currently half of my house is without power and the other half is ready to go at any minute.  Has this inspired me to go out and get flashlights?  Nope.  Instead, I have perfected brushing my teeth and locating items by feel.  The other thing is that the treadmill isn't working without electricity either.  No thanks, I'm not going Fred Flintstone style or attempting to run out in Dale City at four in the morning.  Maybe I'll get lucky an get home early enough tonight to run outside???

Do you know a good electrician that is buying his way into heaven through pro bono work?

Would you have someone do electrical work on your home without obtaining a permit?