> The more I use bash the more I appreciate it.

That is true for sure if you write bash scripts quasi daily. However if you don't it becomes very easy to forget, at least for me. That's why I'm the type of person that tries to look out for alternatives in different languages.

I've had and read from cover to cover, Bash, sed, and AWK books, yet when I have to get back to them I still only remeber the most fundamental features that I use every couple of days or weeks.