Many common household upgrades and repairs require a permit where the average homeowner or property owner is not aware of the need for a permit. As a general rule when in doubt, ask!! Who answers these questions? And where does a property owner go to get these answers? Best place to start is with the Development Services Department or Building Code Department for your community. A quick internet search can usually lead you to a phone number and often a list of what needs a permit and what does not. It may seem like a hassle obtaining a permit.

Back in 1835, an Austrian physicist by the name of Schrodinger devised a way to explain quantum physics (and impress women) by placing a cat inside a sealed box with a vial of poisonous gas that could break at any moment and kill the unwitting feline.  The crux of this exercise was this: until one opened the box to see if Mr. Finickypants was still upright, the cat could be considered both alive and dead.  (Who says physicists don’t know how to party?)  We’ll come back to Schrodinger, a potential cat killer, in a few moments.