Happy 10th Anniversary Pure & Weary

Two of our essential human needs include laughter and love. I was lucky enough to experience both this weekend, along with two women who have been their champion for the past 10 years.

Pure & Weary, my favorite comic duo, celebrated their 10th anniversary with a live show Saturday night at the Yard Theater in Los Angeles. I felt so grateful for the opportunity to see them perform, to sit in a nice, full audience and witness their wit and generosity, and to join in the resulting laughter and applause.

I even got to meet their unpaid intern, who took a breakfast meeting with me despite a booked calendar.

You might call me a Pure & Weary groupie. I was there in 2014 when they hosted their first show at the Lincoln Loft in Chicago. I saw them at Second City, Stage 773, and the People’s Improv Theater in New York.

But, it had been a long time since I’d seen them perform in LA, so I could barely contain my excitement on the long flight there,

Katherine, Ed and their sweet dog Benny picked me up from LAX and took me directly to their favorite Mexican restaurant for tacos and margaritas. Then, still in my very Midwestern travel togs, I went with Katherine to Sofar Sounds, a pop-up concert series. This one was at a Santa Monica pottery studio full of extremely cool, very young music fans. We sat on throw rugs and enjoyed sets from three visiting musical groups. On average, I was the oldest person in the room by 30 years or so. But, I owned that and no one seemed to mind when I stretched my back dramatically between sets.

My visit was also a working one. Katherine and I spent most of Saturday huddled over our current writing project.

I saw lots of familiar faces at her show that night and we toasted its success later at a venue nearby.

By the end of my visit, I felt like I had enjoyed the full LA experience including a beautiful hike, a fresh fish lunch in Malibu, a power breakfast with the very precocious baby Mae, my first Korean barbecue, and some productive time in a studio.

I can’t wait to go back.

So, in addition to congratulating them on this impressive milestone, I’d like to thank Pure & Weary for sharing their gift of eloquent laughter and genuine love.

Here’s hoping you all find plenty of both as well in the coming days.