← Welcome to the Party
Welcome to the Party
The Debate Rages On! Alex Morgan, Sue Bird, and Crystal Dunn + many more Chime In!
00:49:09
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- [00:00]
A
We had one hour to text as many friends as we could and get some responses. And we said, okay. Just curious. Having a debate with a friend. I didn't say what friend. Having a debate with a friend. Is being a professional athlete hard, yes or no? Okay. Who'd you go to? Because I don't know yet. I'm dying to find out. Attention. The party is about to commence. Welcome to the party. What's up, party people? Welcome to the party. I'm Julie Foudy.
- [00:39]
B
And I'm Abby Wambach.
- [00:42]
A
And Abby and I, full disclosure, have been having this debate for a very long time. And so for today's episode, we decided, let's settle this debate once and for all. Because we needed to decide who's the winner of this debate. Were that competitive. Here's our debate. Are you ready?
- [01:05]
B
I am.
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A
It is. Is being a professional athlete hard? Yes or no?
- [01:14]
B
Yes.
- [01:14]
A
Right. So we clearly have different viewpoints on this, and we decided the POD is the perfect place to settle this debate. And we also decided that we should text our friends who are or were professional athletes and. And find out what they think about this. And so we went about texting friends. We didn't tell them what it was for. All we did was say, hey, I'm just curious. I'm having a debate. This is what I said. Abby, I'm just curious. Having a debate with a friend. Is being a professional athlete hard, yes or no?
- [01:46]
B
My question was, hey, I have a weird question. Do you think being a professional athlete was hard, yes or no? And the answers that we got are so funny. But, Jules, I want to go and start from the beginning, because we were having dinner a couple of months ago.
- [02:01]
A
Very beginning. Yes.
- [02:04]
B
We were having dinner a few weeks ago, and I was expressing some of my opinions and feelings about being a professional athlete. And then you were just, like, laughing, like, literally in my face, just laughing at me. And I'm like, what is that?
- [02:18]
A
Sounds cold.
- [02:19]
B
What is so funny? Can you tell this story what was so funny at what I was saying?
- [02:26]
A
I wasn't laughing at you. I was just. You were talking about how hard it was, and I said, I don't think it was that hard. And you were like, what? You don't think being a professional athlete was hard? And I was like, no, no, I don't. I don't think it was hard. So. Okay, so share your side of it.
- [02:46]
B
I'm stunned.
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A
You argue.
- [02:48]
B
Yeah. So here's the thing. I think the POD squad knows. Well, first and foremost, whenever Julie and I are Laughing with or at each other. Don't come at us with like one of us is bullying the other because we're teammates, we're friends, we're long term friends that we can have a good laugh with each other. So I just wanna preface it off with that.
- [03:08]
A
Secondly, good preface.
- [03:10]
B
Professional sports is difficult for a wide range of reasons. And I have to kind of go through for me and Jules, just interrupt me when you think that like, ah, that doesn't fit with me. There's, there's, there's the physical component, there's the mental component, and then there's like the spiritual or emotional component. And for me, like early days, I felt like it was just like this. So much fun. It was kind of this relief because I had put so much effort and energy prior to getting to be paid for the job. I was just doing it for free and for fun. And so it felt like the best job in the world. I was killing so many, like, I was like doing so many things. And in this one activity of playing sports. Right?
- [03:56]
A
Yeah.
- [03:57]
B
So there was like this fun element and then there was like the stress and the pressure element. And then, and then as my career went on, it just became really difficult over time. When you, when your first early days, like Jules, you did it longer for basically free than I did. And so maybe that has something to do with this debate that it wasn't as hard for you.
- [04:22]
A
That I never really got paid for to begin with.
- [04:25]
B
Yeah, that you were just like the early 99ers and the women who started this game were just in it for the love of the game. Like period, end of story. And so maybe you were in it.
- [04:36]
A
For the love of the game for sure.
- [04:38]
B
Yeah, for sure. And I was in it for the love of the game. And also it was nice to get paid. It was nice to, to be compensated, right?
- [04:49]
A
Yeah. I'm not saying that it wasn't demanding that it didn't take a mental or emotional toll. I think it does. And it has all those things. I'm just saying what we were given was a gift to be able to play a professional sport and get paid to do it. Even though it was only $10 a day, let's be clear in the beginning. But I mean to be able to do that and walk out every day, whether your muscles hurt and you were aching or you didn't want to get up, like, I don't think that's hard. It was difficult at times in terms of the mental and emotional and physical toll it took. But I don't consider that to be hard. I consider that to be a gift. So, yeah, that I got to be in a position to do that. I think hard is when I think of hard, I think of like first responders, I think of doctors, I think of teachers, I think of, oh my gosh, I'm in the military defending my country. That's hard. I'm fighting for something like this. What we were doing wasn't hard, it was demanding. But it was a gift.
- [06:04]
B
Totally. And I agree with you. It was absolutely a gift. And I wouldn't change anything. You know, obviously we weren't like curing cancer or, you know, going to war. Obviously those things are hard in so many different ways. That's not for me what this is like for me. It's like the actual act of being a pro athlete and all of the things that it encompassed in general, everything was a little bit harder. Right. Like having to like, have a specific diet throughout my entire playing days, having to like, suffer, physically speaking, and continually try to like, make gains. Like, there were no days that I wasn't thinking, how am I going to get better today? And that's exhausting. But I think mentally, one of the biggest reasons that I've learned in the time that I've been away from soccer, there was a healing that I have needed to go through because the monomaniacal self absorption that was required of me personally, I don't, I don't, I don't know if that was you, Jules, but like the, the amount of times that I had to consider myself and my body and I became like the solar system of myself. And it was like kind of this weird. It's hard to describe, but it felt so self centered and kind of icky that I also was scared of the, the after. Like I didn't know what the hell I was going to be without the game. So. Did you ever feel like worried about what you would do in your retirement when you were playing?
- [07:46]
A
You know, what's funny is I was always soccer second almost. See, this is which I think I was so healthy and I didn't know it was healthy at the time. But like, I always had other interests in my life and knew it. I remember even having this debate with coaches of like, you should be watching more film or you should be analyzing more. And I'm like, yeah, I should. I really should. I probably would be a better player, but guess what? I wouldn't be a happier player. I wouldn't be a healthier player.
- [08:22]
B
And.
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A
And when I'm a happier player, I discovered I play better when I think less about it, when I analyze it, less when it's less about me and more about me just finding joy in whatever I'm doing. And for whatever reason, I discovered that early about myself. So I didn't get. Which I think, Abby, what you're describing is very common. It becomes everything, right? How you eat, how you train, how your whole life is around this cycle, and which could clearly, obviously, you know, sway me on this debate on why it was less hard, because I didn't. It wasn't that I didn't take it seriously, but I just felt like it's sports, right?
- [09:09]
B
Okay. But, like, it's important I have to know more about this because what you're talking about feels so fucking foreign to me. Like, how did you make the decision to not put soccer first? Like, and. And who helped teach you that? Like, what coach sat you down? Or what parent? Like, how did you come. How did you come to understand this? This is. This is not the experience that I had at all.
- [09:37]
A
It's so. I know. I think probably the time we lived in helped. There was no social media. There was no awareness about a national team. There was no other national team. We were the first gen. So when you're the first gen without social media, you're kind of building the plane as you go. So there's not all that pressure that comes with that. There wasn't the monetary pressure like you talked about. We were barely getting money, so it was a job for sure. And we got it through sponsorships. Not U.S. soccer. But it didn't have that level of pressure yet. And I also think, I go back to my mom and dad, Slim Jim and Fruity Judy, they didn't even come out to soccer games. They did not care to watch me play soccer. They were like, yeah, that's your thing. Have fun. We're gonna go live our life.
- [10:26]
B
Oh, my God, it sounds so healthy. This sounds so healthy.
- [10:31]
A
Well, you know, there was a point where my dad was like, a World Cup. What's that? I'm not. That's my busy time of the year, honey. I can't go to the first World Cup. He literally said that. I was like, it's kind of important, dad. You might need to go. So Slim Jim and Fruity set this amazing table of, like, yeah, sports is yours. And it's important in that it's healthy and you're having fun, but, like, that's your thing. Do your thing. And supportive in the best of ways. Just. They didn't feel they needed to be present at every game. And it's such a great reminder for me now as a parent as well. And FYI, like, you don't have to be president every game. You're going to be there. They know you, support them and love them. You don't have to show up at every damn thing. That's a whole nother podcast we're going to do. I think the other thing is that we didn't have the pressure of social media. And I think it's just the way I'm wired. Everyone's wired differently, right? Like, I'm wired that I want to be exploring and reading and doing other things beyond just playing sports.
- [11:23]
B
So you didn't take the bait. Like, it feels like I'm. I'm just like, considering all of my. All of my reasons as to why it was hard wins this debate. Because I do think it wins this debate, regardless of how healthy, regardless of how true yours might be sounding to me.
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A
Right?
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B
It's this idea, though, that, like, social media and the bigger the thing gets, the more weight it can kind of carry. Right? Like, I remember. I remember in 2004, when we were training for the Olympics, do you remember this? At how hard that training camp was, that we were like, basically track stars, Essentially. We were like running 8 hundreds until our bodies broke. And then you guys, like, the leadership went into the coaching staff and basically said, uncle, enough. We can't go like this anymore.
- [12:21]
A
We can't do this. Wait, do you remember that we were trying to tell the coach, coaches, like, how hard this is. So we would make the joke, like, USA Track. Bring it in, Bring it in. USA Track and field on three, one, two. And the coaches would just kind of roll their eyes totally.
- [12:36]
B
And I remember that you guys went in and talked to them and we got that fitness session canceled. You guys got that fitness session canceled. And I sat in the locker room and in that locker room chair and I bawled. I bawled my eyes out because I just. I couldn't do another. I couldn't run another 800. I didn't know if my body could do it. And so, like, yeah, I think that this idea of having like a. A normal. It's like a relationship, right? It's like you had a. You had a normal relationship with the game that ended up being. And becoming a career path for you. But for me, I had. I've always had an abnormal relationship with the game because I didn't have anything else. Like, I. I set up my life in a way in college. I Didn't go to class. I didn't say I didn't even graduate because I was, like, putting all of my eggs in this soccer basket in an attempt to outsmart myself. I don't know if that's the right way to say it, but it's like, if I had no plan B, then that would push me in the moments, in the dark moments, in, like, the last sprint, in, like, interesting. The things that were holding me accountable. Like, it was like my accountability teacher in a way. And so.
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A
So you almost didn't want to have that distraction or diversion from soccer because it would have then impacted how you trained and prepared.
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B
Yes.
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A
You would have been less prepared.
- [14:07]
B
Less trained, yes, because I. My mentality was like, I wanted. I wanted. Not for my own selfish reasons, but I wanted to be the best player in the world that I could possibly be so that my team could win as many championships as it could. And so I carried the responsibility and the weight of that responsibility. And it was a serious thing that I carried with me. Whether it was, you know, and I came a little bit later than you. Right. And towards the end of your career. And then early on in my career, it was like, you know, you and Mia and Lil. I mean, Lil stuck around for a little bit, but, like, some of these, like, great. The players that I grew up watching end up retiring, and now the team is, like, turned over to a handful of us. And I'm like, I carried that with such responsibility, like, the. The honor that I had and the. The time and the effort and the. The. The. The way that you built the sport in this country and globally. I wanted to be a part of, like, adding to that. And so there was this, you know, generationally, there's a lot of pressure that comes with being that person. So, yeah, I wonder if. If. If the tail tables were turned, if you would have responded in a similar way, or if it's just part of your constitution where you're just like, I'm going to have some fun doing this thing, and if it works out, it works out. If it doesn't, it doesn't. Like, it was like, my life. It was like my lifeline. The only way I was making money, how else was I going to earn any money? You know what I mean?
- [15:37]
A
But you didn't think at any time, like, oh, I'll be fine. I can do something else. No, I could. If this gig doesn't work, I got other gigs I can do. No, no, you were all locked in. It was all or nothing.
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B
And that is why I was so terrified to retire.
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A
Always, like, from day one in high school, even like that.
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B
No, because it wasn't really.
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A
One is in high school.
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B
It wasn't an option. Yeah, it wasn't an option as, like, it is now to be a pro athlete back then.
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A
Yeah.
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B
I mean, I was 16 when the Olympics, the first Olympics happened in Athens or in Atlanta for you all. So for me, I just. I had no clue. And then when I got into college and then the Olympics happened, and then the World cup in 99 happened, this, like, kind of boon of. Of women's sports and women's soccer happened in the US That I was like, I want to be a part of this. And this is something I can see myself actually doing. I think that I had like a. I was gonna just go work for my dad. Like, that's like. That was like, probably what I was gonna end up doing had it not been.
- [16:35]
A
That's why you were like, I do not want that. Yes, I will do anything so that I don't have to do that.
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B
Yeah. And, you know, when we start traveling the world and you start seeing the world in a totally different way from my, like, little small town in Rochester, New York. Like, what's up, Rochester? But you realize, like, there the world is big, and I wanted to go out into it, you know?
- [17:00]
A
Yeah.
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B
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- [18:33]
A
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- [20:58]
B
Okay, so let me get my phone out. So I went to Chaney, Lauren Chaney Holiday. She was my good one. She was one of the texters and she was great. She says. So my question was just curious if you think being a professional athlete was hard, yes or no? She said, yes, but I loved it. That's it. And I love it.
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A
Okay.
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B
I love it. Okay, who did you go to first? Or. Or whenever.
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A
Okay, Okay. I. I went to Mia Ham first, and she wrote back, what Question mark. I said, I need a yes or no. And she said aspects of it were much harder than college.
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B
That's so good.
- [21:48]
A
Okay, wait, I'm gonna tell you. My second one I went to was.
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B
Well, hold on. Before you go to your second one. I went. I. I texted Mia. Yeah, I texted her.
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A
I said, stay off the 99ers. I told you to stay away from the 99ers.
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B
I knew that you. She said, oh, my God. Jules just asked me the same question. Are y' all in some type of mental scavenger hunt?
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A
So Mia.
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B
I said, pretty much yes. And she said. I said it was harder than college. And that's it. Who's your next one, Jules?
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A
Okay, so Brandi goes. Brandi Chastain, another former US Women's national teamer and the one who got naked when we won in 1999. And for that, I love you, Brandi. Thank you for making that penalty kick because I was the next one to go. True story. I was up next. I was like, oh, please, God, just make it Brandi. Okay, so the question again was, was being a professional athlete hard? Yes or no? Simply put, no. Because I loved the game and the people so much. Was it hard on days when I was injured or cut or not playing or missing family? Yes, but that's part of the joy of climbing and surmounting the barriers in front of you. I never sacrificed anything. I chose to be there and then went after it.
- [23:03]
B
That's good. Okay. That's kind of a mark for Julie. I just also want to say that Lauren Chaney Holiday, she's a World cup champion and a two time Olympic gold medalist as well. I think that we don't really need to ever intro Mia Ham, but in case you don't know and you're here as like a first time follower of sports, Mia Ham's a two time World cup champion and a two time Olympic gold medal medalist. Held the scoring record for both men or women for a very long time. She was the person that I looked up to a lot in terms of the way she carried herself. Just simply one of the greatest women athletes in the history of women's sports and kind of catapulted women's sports and was a face of women's sports for ever. So I just wanted to give those. Those folks who might not know who Mia Ham might be.
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A
Yeah.
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B
Who else? Yeah. So I texted Alex Morgan. Alex Morgan. She is a two time World cup champion and Olympic gold medalist if you haven't heard from her. And so I text her and she said very, very hard. More mentally than physically. And the never ending long camp days, the grind of meetings, playing the mental game coaches, the stress of being in the public eye all the time and being viewed as a number rather than a person. Life is so much in quotes. Easier post soccer. And now I have two kids, building two businesses, managing more relationships than ever before, so.
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A
And she's still saying that's easier. Yeah. Oh shoot. That's team Abby. Damn. Damn you, Alex.
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B
Sure. All right, Jules, you go.
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A
Oh, Alex is about to be honored too for her retirement party. So we need to have Alex at the party. Oh yeah, we'll have a retirement.
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B
She's gonna come to this party for her party. We're gonna have a retirement party. And welcome to the party because guess what?
- [25:04]
A
Yes, this is the party. All right. I asked Shannon Box, former teammate, she also is a World cup champion and three time Olympic gold medalist. We work together on the TNT telecasts. And she said, compared to what I do now in real life, no, it's not that hard. But I would say it takes a special trait to have that commitment to stay at the highest level for long. For so long.
- [25:28]
B
Yes, for sure.
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A
And mind you, we did not tell them what team we were on. We just said yes or no. We didn't give them any idea.
- [25:35]
B
It's true.
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A
Okay.
- [25:35]
B
It's true. I also wrote Shannon Box because you know, she was more my, my generation than yours. But I'm going to let the slide rules. She said, ha ha. I wrote Julie already.
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A
Julie wins. I got her first.
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B
I, I texted Brianna Cope. I don't know if you many people know about Brianna Cope, but Brianna Cope is a professional women's surfer. She's been an awesome documentary on women's surfer. I think it's called Surfer Girls. You should watch it. We watched that on our vacation this last family vacation. And my kids fell in love with all these like women, women surfers. And so she said yes. Haha. That was the most random question ever. It's true. More mentally than physically for me. And then she's like, what's the debate? Do you think it's hard? And so she was asking and I said, you're gonna have to tune in, welcome to the party. To find out the answers. Thank you Brianna for texting back.
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A
Disclosed it. Okay. Okay. I match you with.
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B
Yeah.
- [26:42]
A
Standby Kerry Walsh Jennings. Okay, Kerry Walsh Jennings. Three Straight. She won Olympic gold medals in beach volleyball, as we know. One of them, I believe she was pregnant while she won it. So that should count as like five. That should count as five. I could be wrong on that, but there's no fact checker right now. I think that's true. All right, so I said. So I posed the question. She goes, hmm, I would never frame it that way. No period, love, period.
- [27:21]
B
Okay, so we have an ethereal answer. No, period, love, period. Okay, so that's a team. That is a team Julie answer.
- [27:30]
A
That is a team Julie answer. Thank you very much.
- [27:32]
B
Okay, I got one. I got one. This one is Sue Bird. Uh, she has her own statue, so I don't know if I need to say more, but basically she's won like many, many gold medals and, and, and WNBA championships. She's incredible. She's the co host of two podcasts, A Touch More and Bird's Eye View. Uh, you should check her out. She's incredible. And sue says, yes, we aren't saving lives or going to war, but yes. And then I was. She said, so what's going on? And she then said, my curiosity has piqued and I can't wait to see how this poll shakes out. So, Sue, I also can't wait because I am so shocked that there are any people that have said no, period. I thought Julie was going to like, be the lone soldier here.
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A
You're going to love this one, then. You're going to love this one.
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B
Okay.
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A
Okay. Lynn Biondolo, who plays on the US Women's National Team NWSL's, the Women's Pro league's all time leading scorer, and she's also an Olympic gold medalist. She's co host with Sam Buis on the Women's Game podcast, a fantastic podcast, as we know. She, she said, yes, depending on how much you care about being great.
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B
Oh, my God. That is actually the truth. That is the truth.
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A
Yes, it is. It so is. You know, they, they always said Michael Jordan's greatest trait was that he was, he was afraid of failing. Right? He always wanted to be the greatest.
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B
Yes.
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A
And he always was afraid of failing, even as the greatest. Ah, so good.
- [29:24]
B
All we really want, truly all we dream about and think about is comfortable clothes. Right, Julie? I don't think people understand that. And at the end of the day, that's kind of priority number one for me.
- [29:38]
A
It's kind of the only priority. Priority number one through 1000.
- [29:43]
B
Looking cute too, but like, it's great, but it's not really the, like the comfy clothes that I have for me is. It's the most important thing in my day to day rotation.
- [29:53]
A
Okay. Do you have there Vuorie's dream knit performance jogger?
- [29:59]
B
Yes.
- [29:59]
A
Okay. Because I have it in like seven different colors and where do I even begin? Because one, it's lightweight, one, you can wear it to yoga. You could wear it running, you could wear it to beach volleyball. Yes. I play a lot of that. Right. The fabric. I know. You're a fabric gal.
- [30:16]
B
Yes.
- [30:16]
A
Abs feels like butter. Ugh. And so I mean, and then I end up what I just end up doing because I think showering is overrated. You just stay in it all day. You stay in it all day and you. It could even be your pajamas. It's that soft.
- [30:32]
B
I think that that's hilarious. I usually shower and then get into another pair of Yuri sweats. So that's like.
- [30:38]
A
That's my. I don't, I don't.
- [30:40]
B
All right. But Vuori is an investment in your happiness for sure. And for our listeners, they are offering 20% off your first purchase. Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet@vuori.com WelcomeToTheParty. That's V U O R I dot com. Welcome to the party. Exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.
- [31:06]
A
Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase, but you get free shipping on any US orders over $75. And I like this because maybe it doesn't work out in the first. You get free returns. So go to Vuori.com welcome to the party and discover the versatility of Vuori. Clothing exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.
- [31:27]
B
Okay, I got. I got another one. And she was my year, so if you texted her, I'm stealing it. Becky Sauerbrun.
- [31:35]
A
Oh, yes. I texted her. Of course.
- [31:39]
B
Okay, I got to go up.
- [31:41]
A
Wait, what'd she say?
- [31:43]
B
She said to you? She said, haha. Yes. Julie just asked me as well.
- [31:52]
A
They're all us.
- [31:53]
B
She. And then she said whoever says it's not hard wasn't doing it right. Hot take. Hey, hey, hey. Becky.
- [32:02]
A
Becky. Butter sour Brun in with a hot take.
- [32:05]
B
I just hold on a second before we go on and maybe we'll talk about this a little bit later. But what Lynn said is just like really like that might be the truthiest truth. Like if you cared about being great.
- [32:18]
A
The mathiest math. Yes.
- [32:20]
B
Then you might. Then this might. Then the debate is you are. You are only going to be a yes. It Was hard. And if you didn't, if you didn't prioritize being great, then maybe it's like living in the no section. This is fascinating.
- [32:37]
A
Although like Kerry Walsh Jennings, she was a hard, no period love, period.
- [32:42]
B
Yeah.
- [32:42]
A
Okay. That's one that like me, I would be like, did I, did I obsess about being great? Personally, no. Did I obsess about the team being great?
- [32:53]
B
Right.
- [32:53]
A
Yes. Because I didn't probably have the attributes that I knew would get me to. I wasn't going to be the all time leading goal scorer. I wasn't going to be the FIFA world player of the year. Right. So my mindset is, I think less pressure of just how am I helping my team win and then that's being great. So anyways, okay, Crystal, done.
- [33:17]
B
Yeah.
- [33:19]
A
Okay. Another one on the U.S. women's National Team, of course, World cup champion and Olympic gold medalist. Hey, friend, tell your friend yes, she doesn't know you're my friend that I'm asking for again, just curious, was being a professional athlete hard? Is being a professional athlete hard, yes or no? Hey, hey friend, tell your friend yes, it's extremely hard. Lol.
- [33:44]
B
I love Crystal. Honestly, she just can do everything. I. She came on the team when I was leaving and has since. Still on the team now. She's incredible. Has had babies. Does she have more than one baby now or just one baby?
- [34:00]
A
Just one baby.
- [34:01]
B
She's just a. She just doesn't quit. She doesn't stop. Okay. I actually have to throw a random dude into the mix. The token dude.
- [34:10]
A
Oh, our DI segment.
- [34:12]
B
This is our DI segment of the, of the day. So I texted Peyton Manning. I don't know if, if you've ever heard of him. If you haven't, it's okay. I don't think that he'd be upset by it. He. He replied yes, that's it.
- [34:33]
A
Period.
- [34:34]
B
Period. Yes.
- [34:36]
A
Men, they don't, they don't have. Well, it's so funny because like, Sam us, when I texted her, texted her, Sam us, another US Women's national team World cup champion, a host of the women's God the Game podcast, which is, she does such a fantastic job. She's just transitioned to retiring as an athlete and my goodness, she is just crushing it.
- [34:55]
B
Crushing.
- [34:57]
A
She was like, wow, good one. Yes. But I want to give a little context.
- [35:02]
B
I like context.
- [35:03]
A
She wasn't just, she wasn't just going to put yes, period. She wanted permission to give context. I was like, you have permission. Give context. I think it requires a level of focus and Dedication that not all jobs require, though obviously some do. And I think it's hard in the sense that you are probably not going to make it. So it's rare. And in that sense, hard. And then the lifestyle can be hard. Travel, missing family events, being away from home, the pressures of public scrutiny. She kept going. It's also, like this joyous and full opportunity, but I don't think it's any.
- [35:37]
B
Views for the win.
- [35:40]
A
And then Peyton's like, yes, it's hard.
- [35:44]
B
All right, so.
- [35:45]
A
Okay, wait, my last one.
- [35:46]
B
Okay, Meg.
- [35:47]
A
Megan Duggan. All right. Megan Duggan, former captain. Oh, Hillary Knight. I also texted. Did you text Hillary?
- [35:54]
B
I haven't. No.
- [35:55]
A
Hillary. Hillary Knight was like, yes. Lol. Hard. Okay. Megan Duggan. Hillary played on the US Women's hockey team as well. Won an Olympic gold. Megan was the captain of that team. Won an Olympic gold. And when I asked her, I thought this was so perfect because I hadn't even thought of how this played into. We can do hard Things. Duh. But it literally is We Can Do Our Things is your podcast with Glennon. I I. She said yes. It was hard, but as I tell my kids, we can do hard things.
- [36:28]
B
Oh, that's sweet.
- [36:30]
A
And she didn't know you were my friend that I was having this debate with.
- [36:33]
B
Oh, my God. That's so weird, right? That's so serendipitous.
- [36:38]
A
Right?
- [36:39]
B
Well, she's great. We're gonna have to have her on this party. I have two more. In fact, I have three more. Okay. Heather O'Reilly. Heather O'Reilly is she comes in with such a loaded question? I think no. If I had to say yes or.
- [37:01]
A
No, I knew she would be a no. I knew she was Team Julie. Yes. Hey.
- [37:05]
B
Oh, and. And I was like, I know just as best as you can. Such a loaded question. Because I was answering to that. She said, do you want reasoning or not really?
- [37:16]
A
And I said context, like Sam wanted.
- [37:18]
B
It's totally up to you. I don't want you to feel like you need to do work at all, but I'm just actually super interested. She said came with lots of pressures and baggage, but at the end of the day, I was paid for doing exercise and playing with my friends and my passion. And I said yes. Makes a lot sense.
- [37:33]
A
That's me. Naughty.
- [37:34]
B
Yes. Oh, that's so cute.
- [37:37]
A
Wait, did I give Midge Purse yet?
- [37:39]
B
No, not yet.
- [37:40]
A
I didn't. Okay. Midge purse. U.S. women's International Team star. Gotham won a national title with the nwsl. With Gotham. She said the job Itself, No. But the mental volatility of it and the value we put on performance, personal value and worth makes it extremely hard. But that's a culture problem. In a vacuum. It's one of the best jobs in the world. You play outside with your friends, work out, travel, and get paid for it.
- [38:08]
B
So good. She went to Harvard, right?
- [38:13]
A
Yeah. When I read that, I was like, oh, that's so smart.
- [38:16]
B
Oh, and also, just a heads up, party people. Heather. Heather O'Reilly. She's World cup champion. Champion. A three time Olympic gold medalist. And I don't know if this is true, but I'm just going to say it. We'll have to fact check this. I think that she might have delivered the most assists to me throughout my career because she just put them on a dime. And I love Heather Riley. She was one of my favorite teammates ever. We were on the team, basically. She was on my team the whole time I was on the national team.
- [38:48]
A
Okay, Christine Lilly, I got more. Oh, wait. Oh, you got Lil.
- [38:52]
B
Yeah.
- [38:53]
A
God, we did good work in an hour. Good. And the fact that all these people actually responded to us. Bless them.
- [39:01]
B
Okay, so Christine Lilly, Jules. You could probably say World cup champion.
- [39:07]
A
Two time Olympic gold medalist. Yep.
- [39:09]
B
Yeah, she. She did all the things. One of my riders, most cap football player in the history of the Sport, played for 23 years and basically, like, she just never stopped running. She was just the energizer bunny. Did you text her and did she text you back?
- [39:28]
A
I did not text Lil. Okay, actually, wait, maybe I did. Did I text Lil? I don't know. I can't keep it all straight down.
- [39:35]
B
Yeah, I texted her and she said her answer was not as hard as being a mom. Double click yes to that. Double tweet, retweet, whatever it's called. So good.
- [39:49]
A
Okay, I did go to my golfing pals.
- [39:53]
B
Oh, good.
- [39:54]
A
Are out. LPGA hall of Famers. So Julie Angster. I call her Jules number one. I'm Jules number two. Beth Daniel, another LPGA hall of Famer, and Meg Mallon. Yeah, Nutmeg Mallon. I used to call her World Golf hall of Fame. Beth Daniel. Her nickname was BMFD because it was Beth Daniel.
- [40:14]
B
She was such a.
- [40:17]
A
So her nickname is always bmfd. So she replied bmfd. She's talking to herself in the third person. BMFD here says that doing what you love is not hard.
- [40:31]
B
Boom.
- [40:31]
A
Team Julie Inkster replied it was hard, but wouldn't change it for a thing. And then she put in parentheses well, maybe if I started Starbucks. Loved Be My own Boss. It's a good one.
- [40:44]
B
That's good. I mean, I am Meg Mallon.
- [40:48]
A
Same student athlete was hard. Being a professional athlete was liberating. Clipped from Mia.
- [40:55]
B
Yeah. Okay. So this is really, it's fascinating to me. I had Tobin Heath Also text back, 2 time world cup champion, 2 time Olympic gold medalist, co host of the. The recap show. You can find that wherever you get your podcasts. And she texted back, yes and no smiley face.
- [41:17]
A
It's not allowed, Tobes.
- [41:19]
B
And that's just Tobin. And that's just Tobin.
- [41:21]
A
But I'm just like, yes or no.
- [41:23]
B
I think this is like the most fascinating thing to me. I am. I know that we all think that we're kind of right in our head, but I feel so stunned that some people said no. Like you, Julie.
- [41:35]
A
Yeah.
- [41:36]
B
I thought you were going to be like, literally the only one, the only person. And I was feeling a little sad.
- [41:43]
A
Thank you. When you did say, like, you looked at me like, what the hell is wrong with you? When you were like, no. What do you mean no?
- [41:56]
B
Oh, God.
- [41:57]
A
But you know what? This exercise of. You got an hour to text your friends. I think this should be replicated because it actually was really fun as you, you commented, like, to reconnect. Like, I haven't talked to Meg and Beth and Ju for a little bit, so now I'm getting pictures of Julie Inkster's grandkids, which I love. So that kind of stuff, it's so fun.
- [42:18]
B
I think that we should do that. And also to the party people. Right? Like, it's up to you right now to decide who you think won this debate. Team Abby or Team Julie. We're gonna, we're gonna put a poll up to decide the winner, so please weigh in. You can weigh in on social. And this is gonna be for bragging rights for Julie and I because I guess there is no right or wrong answer here. And I think that you're right too. Like, I haven't texted with Lil in a couple years and it's just like, come up with a question in your head. Folks who are listening and think of like a fun yes or no question you can ask somebody that you just have not gotten in touch with in. In a long time. That for no good reason. Because we had no. I mean, we had a reason. We wanted to talk about it in this podcast today, but it was not a good reason.
- [43:03]
A
No, it was fun.
- [43:05]
B
Yeah.
- [43:05]
A
We just competitive. We wanted to win. So we're going to find Out. But, like, what are some. I mean, like, is parenting hard? Yes or no?
- [43:12]
B
Yes. Yes, it is. Yes. Retweet that. Yes. And. Or what's another one? Like, do you never want to ever have to decide what to make your family for dinner? Yes or no?
- [43:28]
A
Do you want to go shopping for groceries? Yes or no?
- [43:33]
B
No. No, No. I definitely don't.
- [43:35]
A
I don't. I don't want to do that. Okay. But here's what I think. If you win. If I win, Team Julie wins.
- [43:42]
B
Huh?
- [43:43]
A
In honor of the king.
- [43:44]
B
Oh, my gosh.
- [43:46]
A
We're gonna wear a crown. You get a. Wear a crown.
- [43:49]
B
I need to get a crown.
- [43:51]
A
Yeah. I'm just predicting it now.
- [43:55]
B
You're predicting that you're gonna win this poll.
- [43:58]
A
Yeah. This is me manifesting it. Right? This actually would work well with your hair abs, because it could.
- [44:03]
B
Yeah, it could lift. I'm gonna mess up my hair. Put it on the side.
- [44:06]
A
All right, party people, no pressure, but please go decide who you are with. Team Abby or Team Julie. Weigh in on social. Social. And Abby, I think that's another successful party in the books. Don't you think so?
- [44:21]
B
I think we may have done it. I mean, I don't know. And if you listen, I also need to say, if you could take one minute, we would really appreciate it. We are really trying to build out this community and getting the rates and reviews and subscribing to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast is super helpful. And don't forget, be sure to follow us on TikTok and Instagram @ welcome to the Party show, where Julie, Billy, and I will bring the party straight to your feed. And you can also pop. Yep.
- [44:53]
A
Don't forget YouTube. Don't forget YouTube.
- [44:54]
B
Yeah, and you can also pop over to YouTube and find us.
- [44:57]
A
Click that little bell icon. Yeah, get that bell icon. So you get the updates when these episodes go live, right?
- [45:04]
B
Yeah.
- [45:05]
A
And bring it in, party people. Usa. Usa. USA on three. Abigail.
- [45:13]
B
One, two.
- [45:13]
A
Count us in.
- [45:14]
B
USA on three.
- [45:15]
A
One, two, three.
- [45:16]
B
Usa.
- [45:17]
A
Usa.
- [45:17]
B
Usa.
- [45:18]
A
Usa.
- [45:20]
B
Welcome to the Party is an independent production brought to you by Treat Media. Treat Media makes art for humans who want to stay human forever. Dog is our production partner, and you can watch our full conversations on the welcome to the party YouTube channel and follow us at welcome to the Party show on Instagram and TikTok.