Started out with kde3, switched to gnome 2, and as those two evolved found myself longing for simpler and snappier solutions. Windows was evolving relatively slowly but even there you'd always lose one or two things every time you upgraded. On Linux this was much more radical. Not just the desktop but also the stuff under the hood.
Today I just prefer the minimal version of most things I use and do daily. i3 does the job for window management. Vim with as little plugins as possible for scripting and coding (as long as it's not Java or c++ with qt). Since eventually my favorite plugin will stop working as it's unmaintained, or the file manager will get an overhaul and look different and have all its keyboard shortcuts changed. The less stuff I depend on the better.