Support Cases and Mourning
I was thinking about how I handle support cases, and it tickled me that I often follow the Kübler-Ross model of grief, although I prefer the steps outlined by Dr. Hibbert in “The Deadly Blowfish”:
Dr. H: Now, a little death anxiety is normal. You can expect to go through
five stages. The first is denial.
Homer: No way! Because I'm not dying! [hugs Marge]
Dr. H: The second is anger.
Homer: Why you little! [steps towards Dr. H]
Dr. H: After that comes fear.
Homer: What's after fear? What's after fear? [cringes]
Dr. H: Bargaining.
Homer: Doc, you gotta get me out of this! I'll make it worth your while!
Dr. H: Finally, acceptance.
Homer: Well, we all gotta go sometime.
Dr. H: Mr. Simpson, your progress astounds me.
Denial
“No way! Because I fixed that bug. The customer is wrong.”
Anger
“Gah! This is keeping me from my work!”
Fear
“What if this bug is deeper than it appears?”
Bargaining
“If I can come up with a workaround, they’ll be happy with that, right?”
Acceptance
“Oh well, I’ll put in the fix.”