I also like metaphors. I simply don't have the mental circuitry to effectively process complex, abstract topics (like LW or OB posts) without some sort of imagery I can relate it to, be it an analogy, example, picture, or whatever. It's much much easier for me to understand something if it can be imagined it as some sort of real-world situation.

I think it's important to properly craft metaphors so they illustrate the concept being described while minimizing other, tag-along concepts. But this doesn't seem like an insurmountable goal.