I once worked in a skyscraper with a coworker who said, “it’s a mute point,” almost every day.
I can’t remember whether I ever tried to correct him. Probably not. At the time, my nervous system couldn’t handle conflict. I’d get overwhelmed when faced with the slightest challenge.
I also have this strange inability to understand what other people know. I spent most of my life assuming that everyone knew everything I did, plus a little bit more. Logically, I knew that couldn’t possibly be true (especially as my education deepened), but my body over-rode this. It always told me that I was the one who didn’t know.
At the same time, “mute point” was driving me crazy, and my irritation could’ve overcome my fear.
He eventually took vacation to visit an old friend and came back changed. His long hair was cut, and he never said “mute point,” again.
PS: I wrote this in a dream last night and then remembered it this morning.