And Proud We Are of All of Them

While home from college on Christmas break in 1998, my brother introduced me to a little film called The Big Lebowski. I don't really have the time or space to delve into the intricacies of this movie's greatness but suffice it to say that I loved every second of it and it quickly became one of my all-time favorites. Sometimes there's a man—and I'm talkin' about the Dude here—sometimes there's a man who, well, he's the man for his time and place, he fits right in there—and that was the Dude, in my life at that time. Over the course of the next five months, I watched it at least weekly and my world slowly began to resemble that of the Dude's: the Sobchak beard and tinted hunting glasses, bowling, White Russians, listening to the theme from "Logjammin'" while cruising with the T-tops off of my car in a cutoff denim shirt, what have you (nevermind what this did for my GPA). Even now when I watch the movie again, I pick up subtle inflections of a character's voice or mannerisms that I had absorbed without even knowing it.

Last night, I spent the evening with a couple hundred people who, by all appearances, were as affected by this film as I was. I am speaking, of course, of Lebowski Fest, "a celebration of all things Lebowski." The New York version of this is a two-night event: Friday, a few bands followed by a midnight screening of the movie; Saturday, bowling and a costume contest. I chose Friday, because a screening of the movie ought to be involved, no? The first two bands (Hair Supply and Bling Kong) were entertaining enough but by the third I was beginning to get the feeling that this was more about the bands than Lebowski, which is disheartening for a festival dedicated to the film. But when the screening started and the Dude appeared for the first time, the thunderous applause and delighted howls of the crowd reassured me that I was in the right place. As I sang Bob Dylan's "The Man in Me" in unison with the crowds of hundreds while watching the opening credits roll, I was covered in goosebumps. These were my people.