Perhaps so, however I did not call myself humble.

Apologies. I overstated. How about "I study a lot of stuff"

And now the reply, if I've accurately modeled it, is "So you've studied a lot of stuff, what makes you an expert on any of it?"

Programming at its heart has always been cross-discipline, so there's really no judgment of ability aside from solving problems involving those disciplines you're working for. I find myself with a lack of adjectives that will keep our conversation short.