Skip to main content

What are you, friends?: MUMPSIMUS vs. SUMPSIMUS

Are you a mumpsimus or a sumpsimus?

The well-known phrase “teaching an old dog new tricks” always makes me think about the old generations called boomers, which could broadly include people at my age, and their own stubborn modus vivendi.  Although quite a few mid-aged fellas and the elderly folks around us are trying to stay young and refreshed, the way they think or see the world often renegades their labels down to the stick-in-the-mud or fossilized mumpsimus.  A mumpsimus is someone who sticks to a mistaken belief, habit, or usage despite clear evidence that it is wrong.  On the opposite side on the scale of tendency in life is a sumpsimus who’s willingly correcting form or accepting/ adopting the correction. Which side are you gravitating toward in life?

 

 

Where do I stand on the scale of being mumpsimus and sumpsimus?

When it comes to......

-          food choices, I am low-key mumpsimus because I would like to stay on the safe side by eating familiar food.


t     teaching grammar in a language, I make it a rule to let my students write and speak on the basis of the correct prescriptive grammar. However, I am also open to let them flexible in case the old prescriptive grammar has become way too outdated and the new descriptive grammar are more often in use. 


-          fashion statement, I try trendy styles now and then, but can’t stand skimpy clothes that I loved to wear in my 20s. Most of the time, I am wearing the same old comfy outfits even if they belong to the has-been styles that are not in vogue anymore.


-          exercise, running is definitely on top of my priority workout list albeit many people say it is not the best activity for ageing people.


-          relationships, I have never been a sociable “party person” or the one who takes delight in expanding the loop of friends or acquaintances. I tend to spend my life with those who are on the same wavelength with me. That is obviously why I can’t take full advantage of using social media platform to befriend total strangers.


-          movie genres or books, I love any kind of films of books as long as they help me understand the meaning of life.


-          love, I am still working on the definition of “L.O.V.E.” because it would be unimaginably challenging for me to venture out my comfort zone to fall in love with somebody outside my marital status. Some may argue that love cannot be restrained only to one person in life, and some others may assert that a true-blue love can only happen once in your lifetime.

 

By now, I believe you may have formed an opinion about me. That’s fair. I also consider myself somewhat of a mumpsimus—someone who sticks to their ways. Still, who can say? Tomorrow brings new opportunities for improvement. And what about you? Would you allow me to get to know you, my friend?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

On the Day of the New Beginning of My Home Country

  Opening the Door to My Strong Home Country by Jean Jiyoung Lee June 3 rd 2025   Let your long-lost inner light shine Wake up and stay woke from dark torpor Prayers for those in pain are yours and mine Heart-wrenching memories will stay where they were It will be all right to find yourself supine As long as you get up and go tomorrow as a warrior Pat on your back and be on cloud nine The wintry chill in the past would rather feel like warmer When upslopes batter your spirits down, just say you’ll be fine As you feel connected to your strength, curveballs are no longer a torture Now laugh out loud and give a smile so divine The moon rabbits would greet you back in your dreams tonight with rice cake from their mortar Blessing is another word for fine The bitter past was only a blessing in disguise ‘cause your new era will be a perfect restorer Raise your glass of wine Time to live your life on the solid anchor
Post a Comment
Read more

Evolving Grammar Rules

  The Grammar Rules Are Evolving or Becoming Extinct! Are you hairsplitting grammar police based on the existing/ traditional prescriptive grammar or gravitating more towards casual/ colloquial descriptive grammar? As we are living in the era of myriads of fast-paced communication venues such as instant text messages and lots of online conversations, languages and their grammar rules are fast evolving today. English is no the exception. Let us go over some of the English grammar rules that people ignore quite often times and are normally accepted today. Even the following examples might be out of their styles or seem outdated in any time soon. One thing you need to remember is that quite a lot of academic or formal writers are still expected to follow the existing/ old school grammar rules.   1.    Prescriptive Grammar: Don’t end a sentence with a preposition. Vs. Descriptive Grammar: Yes, you can end a sentence with a prepostition.   E.g., Winston C...
Post a Comment
Read more

Bird Word Scramble

Are you a bird watcher or stalker? 😊 Try to unscramble the popular North American birds below. Example:  prswaor: ________________,     answer: sparrow    1.    nidralca: ________________    2.    rekuty: _________________    3.    cnifh: _________________    4.    drocewpkeo: ______________    5.    mhbigrmudni:__________________    6.      boirn: _______________    7.    leacpni: ________________    8.    riooel: ________________    9.    kiehaeccd: _________________    10.                raekapte: __________________    11.             ...
Post a Comment
Read more