Hector Martin

also the decaying aluminium wire was load-bearing: the junction box was "fixed" to the wall with a single screw (naturally, not going through the hole specifically meant for a screw) but mostly held in place by wiring

by the way, directly above the load-bearing junction box with the aluminium-copper twist there was a polystyrene foam ceiling tile, glued to it badly enough that it fell off and is now solely supported by wiring that rests on threads of screws mounted into the wall

I mean, saying that the aluminium-copper twist was "in" the junction box is doing it a favor. it was "near" the junction box. "in the general area" is perhaps a good way to describe it.

as you can see, this junction box has three exposed wires. left to right. 1: neutral. 2: living room ceiling light 1. 3: living room ceiling light 2. 4: bedroom ceiling light and -all bedroom sockets-. yes. the ENTIRE BEDROOM, including SOCKETS is designed for SWITCHED NEUTRAL.

*wakes up* i'm this close to giving up. not because i can't fix this--even more depressingly, the fix is near trivial far as i can see--but because of a severe, life-threatening shortage of even. specifically...