Walterego

[Brother D]

Hey dudes, am kinda new here, but am wondering if there is an information, man, on keeping your "walterego" in check? I'm sure its' down there somewhere on this forum, though searching for hours is too exhausting.

Abidingly,
Brother D

[BikerDude]

If you are feeling Walter then be Walter.
If you are feeling Dude be Dude.
I'd say it's key to try to feel Dude more often than you feel Walter.
You can get there by learning to Abide and don't let the small stuff get to you.

[Brother D]

Far out, mark it 8 rev. Will get down to cases.

[Reverend Al]

If you are feeling Walter then be Walter.
If you are feeling Dude be Dude.
I'd say it's key to try to feel Dude more often than you feel Walter.
You can get there by learning to Abide and don't let the small stuff get to you.

Sound advice BikerDude.  Of course, that last sentence can sometimes take a lifetime to master. 

[Rev. Jimmy]

I've honestly been thinking about writing an essay about The Big Lebowski as an illustration of the human soul, or psyche if you're not into the whole mystical thing.
You have Donny as the inner child, Walter as the survival instinct/warrior nature or what have you, Maude as the feminist aspect. Dude is basically the centered zen aspect. I don't have it all fleshed out yet, but I'll be working on it and maybe submit it to The Dudespaper.
Back to your complicated case. We all have a little Walter in us, which is good because sometimes you have to draw the line in the fucking sand. However, as we know, Walter can fly of the handle fast and really fuck things up if we don't reign him in.
My advise is to try to keep Walter channeled in a productive way. Go to the gym, go to the shooting range, play a violent video game or something. Let Walter out to play.
Once you've blown off some steam, then think about how to address problems at hand. Maybe it is time to go to war, or perhaps you say fuck it and go bowling.
In my experience, it is best to find a healthy outlet for the anger so I can keep my mind limber.

[Brother D]

That is my concern dude. I know to abide, a dude must mind their mind, look for the undudeness within, which'll be down there somewhere and keep from being too uptight. I guess tying things together, not having too many strands in the head is a way of keeping walter at bay, though as in another post on this site, having something that is inherently yours, like the gym or bowling etc is an important aspect of keeping sane. The Dude has his rug to keep himself centered and balanced, which i suppose ties more than his room together, so having a safe place to hold on to can do wonders for the soul. Fabulous stuff.

I have heard of mind palaces and i guess if it helps, in our little world, a nice pad to keep unspoiled in our noggins is worth a visit.  For me, taking a breath and sighing seems to work sometimes, (not always though, the plane occasionally does crash into the mountain, which seems to be more frequent since giving up smoking), laughing at the absurdity of uptightness and rolling with it is a practise i try to make it to as much as i can if i'm not too exhausted.

Thankie for the insight dude,

Abidingly,
Brother D.

[Reverend Al]

I look to the modified Yin-Yang that has become the symbol of Dudeism for inspiration.  The essential concept of Yin-Yang is balance; duality, two halves forming a whole.  One cannot exist without the other.  Understanding that we are all both Dude and Walter, I think the key is finding a perfect balance between the two--that "sweet spot" where they are equal and thus cancel each other out so that we are neither Dude nor Walter, but just are.

[Brother D]

Fuckin' A, thats' fuckin' innerestin, man. No one wants to deal with dipshits or reacionaries, let alone be one. Abiding has its rewards and lines in the sand (as said above), are useful on a personal level. This dude has much to learn...

[jgiffin]

I've honestly been thinking about writing an essay about The Big Lebowski as an illustration of the human soul...I don't have it all fleshed out yet...

You have an intriguing hypothesis. Work and elaborate on it. I'd love to see some of the more neglected sections of our forums well, uh, less neglected.

[Brother D]

Lotta ins, lotta outs, what have you, Sounds exhausting, mang. Good luck, dude.