I was worried about being irretrievably seduced by the dark side, too. I've built four briftered bikes in the last four years and plan on doing another when I get one of those new-fangled 9-speed Ultra groups all together They are all nice feeling and snickety-snick and they please me with their clever functionality and light touch.

But my bikes that get the most miles are still the ones with barcons or down tube shifters. It's all good.

Edit: I have not one damn thing to apologize for on this bike, it just works: