Haha, I loved the "strictest of frameworks and let's you stay out late and eat ice-cream for breakfast every now and then" quote. :)
Anyway, it's interesting what you write about Angular, that it's a framework instead of just a library. I'm working on a React/Redux app on Node, and although it's fun, it's my first ever JavaScript (in fact, first ever real web-) app, so I'm thinking maybe Angular would have been a better starting point.
On the other hand, I've learned a lot from building the React-app more or less by myself, so that's the upside.
You definitely didn't make a mistake in choosing React and Redux. It's actually a little bit easier to learn than Angular in my opinion - has a lot less extra syntax, less moving parts and gives you more control of course. Glad you liked my attempt at humor.
Interesting, I'd thought that Angular was indeed a bit easier. Then I'm glad I went for React/Redux, because the learning curve has been steep enough for my liking.