Join the cult (Last updated: 2025-05-11)
Just wondering why R has such a hold on me
Have you ever wondered what it is about R that holds your interest over and above your day job?
I mean, admit it, we’re all a bit obsessed with it, aren’t we?
It’s OK, you’re in a safe place.
But this software is taking over your life isn’t it?
I was stuck behind a truck in slow moving traffic the other week.
No big deal, until I noticed it’s registration ended with ‘NSE’.
Yeah, that got me thinking about all sorts of stuff (the horror of lazyeval, if you remember that far back).
But that’s just a minor example.
I recently moved to a new team and got asked what I did in my spare time.
“Write code, make charts…er, very much like work really”.
I’m not kidding:
I’m not complaining, by the way.
But how did this happen?
Why do I want to do this in my spare time?
Is it because I just can’t help myself? Why not?
I think it’s a safe space away from all this…ugh (gestures to UK in general) .
{rockthemes} was a pointless, meaningless distraction, which, annoyingly, given the effort I’ve put into the others, is my most popular R package to date. (Yes, small numbers, but I’m just a random person, ‘screaming into the void’ (copyright cantabile
) and so anyone showing any interest in anything I do is always welcomed)
It took my mind off some of the general day to day endless screaming of the last year, and gave me a chance to use R away from the SQL gymnastics of the day job.
But again…
Why was I so compelled to use this software?
Am I addicted? Have I joined a cult?
I think I probably have. People seem to get quite upset on Twitter when R is referred to as such. I don’t think it’s bad thing. I mean, it’s not The Cult, who, to be clear, absolutely rule.
I’m talking about those TV shows, the films, those bands that you get into way before they become mainstream. They have their own catchphrases, their own language, their own little worlds, and you either know about it, or you don’t. And if you don’t, then you’re missing out.
And of course, when you’re into something, and the rest of the world can’t see it, you’re kinda sad, and kinda glad.
Sad, because you feel like a weirdo for being into this thing that no-one else gets, but also glad, because you absolutley don’t want everyone getting into this thing and ruining everything that makes it cool in the first place.
That’s how I feel about R.
I suppose basically I like noodling away, importing some data, some light wrangling, and then maybe a plot at the end of it. I like that I can do this in my spare time, and it doesn’t feel like work.
I just hope I’m not completely wasting my time.
I do wonder if I should knock it on the head, and devote my free time to things that might boost my earning potential (shockeroonie, kids get more expensive as they get older).
But, if R becomes more mainstream, then there will be more demand for those with R skills, right?
R has been around for a while, it should still be around for a bit, I hope.
If not, then I’ll be seeing you around at a Julia convention sometime :)
Failing that, we’ll always have Paris Excel.
