Long ago when I did that sort of work, one of my pro bono clients was the town's arts center. I appreciated the center's work, and in particular I admired the staff, putting in yeoman's work for wages that were low even for being in a still-developing corner of a still-developing country. One day Cooperación Española inflicted, er, gifted the center with an Arts Consultant, complete with capital A and capital C, with a "volunteer" stipend that was exceeded the combined wages of the center's entire staff. Among her many talents was messing up the office computer, then phoning me directly to let me CLEARLY know how UNACCEPTABLE my work is and that I MUST come to address my shoddy workmanship NOW because her worship is too important to be putting up with that NONSENSE.
Apologies for the shouty caps; I'm trying to convey her tone.
I'm sorry to say that I was not tactful in my reply. Not because she deserved tact but because I hadn't let myself drop to her level so quickly. But once I calmed down, I had a chat with the center's director, a personal friend. With that the Arts Consultant was gone, taking her A and C with her. And I fixed the computer.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
