Tarpley’s Thoughts

Big Brothers Big Sisters Event

I was honored to be part of the Big Brothers Big Sisters event  in Kalamazoo, MI.  I had a great time learning more about the organization and being part of something so special.

 The event was a great success.  I did a clinic in the afternoon and at night I had the opportunity to share my story.  Throughout my life, I’ve always had a really strong support system to help me accomplish my goals.  I know if it was not for them, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

 I really admire the organization and I loved being part of the event.  Thank you!

Growing up in Kalamazoo, Michigan my family and I would come into Chicago for events, but now I have the opportunity to live in this exciting city and play professional soccer.  This is my first week in the windy city and I am thoroughly enjoying it.  I love being close to the magnificent mile, exploring new places, and most importantly playing for the Red Stars, the new women’s professional soccer team.

We just got back from a week of pre-season in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  We were all looking forward to getting to Chicago, settling in and seeing what we have to look forward to in the next 6 months.  We have been doing a lot of fun things as a team. Every Wednesday night a few teammates cook dinner for everyone. This week a few of the players cooked spaghetti, salad and brownies with ice cream for dessert.  They set the bar pretty high! Our two Swedish players are cooking this week; even though, they cook for most of us on a regular basis! My roommate (Megan Rapinoe) and I have already reserved taco night when it is our turn. We are carpooling to practice using Zip Cars.  It has been fun to figure out how to navigate around the city with my teammates.  I’m not sure if I’m used to all the traffic, but I am really enjoying the city life. 

I feel very fortunate to be playing for the Red Stars.  They are a quality organization and I am excited for the opportunity to play at Toyota Park.  We have a very talented team and we have players from all over the world including Sweden, Brazil, England, and Australia.  It has been a really great experience getting to know the entire team, learning to communicate with the foreign players and seeing what great people and players we have involved with the Red Stars.  We play a very exciting style of soccer and I can’t wait to play our home opener on April 19^th at Toyota Park!  This is a dream come true for me to be playing in a professional soccer league in such a great city.  Please come out and support the Red Stars!

We are back in Shanghai! Well, we haven’t been here since last september when we were here for the Women’s World Cup but we spent so much time here that this feels like a home base for us. I really like this city. There are lots of things to do and our hotel is basically right across the street from the stadium.

Driving to our hotel, I spotted a Starbucks and Coldstone within walking distance! I’m really excited to have two of my favorite things so close!

We had a great team victory over New Zealand last night. We won 4-0 and we played really well. Japan beat Norway so it turned out that we won our group! I have been really proud of our team responding to losing to norway and finding a way to rebound and still place first in our group.

We are settling into our new hotel. We have another day until we play our quarter final match against our northern neighbor, Canada. They are a great team and it is a battle every time we play them. I have a lot of respect for them and I’m sure it is going to be a hard fought match.

Go USA!!!

We arrived in Shenyang! I have never been to this city and I’m really excited to experience it. The last few days have gone really fast. We’ve played two games, watched the opening ceremonies as a team, and ventured out to see two men’s soccer games.

It has been really exciting to start the games. Unfortunately, we lost our first game to Norway. We were disappointed with the result, but we won our second game against Japan. Now, we have one more game in bracket play against New Zealand.

The opening ceremonies were a huge production. There were thousands of people, lights and fireworks! The Chinese did an unbelievable job. It was really exciting to watch. Although we couldn’t walk, it was still a special feeling seeing USA walk into the stadium. It is such a surreal feeling being at the Olympics. As a child, I dreamed of representing the United States and to be here is a dream come true!

Since out games are in satellite cities outside of Beijing, it is hard for us to see other events. We have been fortunate to have gone to two men’s soccer games since we’ve been here. It is always fun to go to other events to really get the whole feel for the Olympics. The first game we saw Italy vs. Honduras. It was a good game, but Italy came out on top. We also saw Brazil play New Zealand. I was so excited to see Brazil play! They have so many talented players and thet were really fun to watch.

I am really enjoying my Olympic experience.

Two exciting outings

We went and got foot massages as a team…. It was so relaxing and nice.  They spent 50 minutes working on our feet! I’ve never had anyone massage my feet for 50 minutes. I definitely could get used to it!

We also went to see the beginning of the Great Wall.  The portion of the wall that we visited is called the Dragon Head.  It was right on the water and you could go boating, walking, or riding in a little cart.  We found a popsicle stand which most of us indulged in.  I had a Dreamsicle which brought me back to my childhood days!  Also, have you ever heard of Blue Moon ice cream?  We got into a discussion today and lots of people didn’t know what it was…..is it a Midwest thing?  Blue Moon ice cream is the best!

As far as the weather goes, it was another hot and humid day.  Fortunately, it rained a little bit and the weather cooled off.  Only a few more days until it is gameday!

We are in Qinhuangdao right now which is the site of our first two matches.  Qinhuangdao is right on the water so there is a mild breeze.  Don’t get me wrong, it is still hot and humid, but sometimes there is a little warm breeze which is a nice treat.

We took a train from Beijing to Qinhuangdao and it was a very interesting experience.  We got a VIP lounge to hang out in while we were waiting for our train.  The lounge even had free internet!  The train ride was fairly uneventful until we were told we would have one minute to exit the train and then the doors would close.  So, when we arrived in Qinhuangdao we grabbed our stuff and exited the train in record time.  We all made it off the train in 59 seconds.  The train door was open for exactly 2 minutes before it was off to its next stop.  That is pretty impressive!

This city has really embraced the tournament.  Every time a team drives to any event they shut the streets down to the rest of the people.  Basically, we have a direct route to where we need to go. I get bus sick very easily so I am very thankful for the direct route.  China is doing a nice job hosting this tournament. 

We arrived in Beijing….our first game of the 2008 Olympics is almost here!  I feel like Beijing has been transformed and everyone is so excited for the games to begin.  It is a little smoggy, but, overall, very nice.  I have been impressed with the facilities, people and hospitality.

After our 12 hour flight from San Francisco, we were greeted by lots of eager Chinese helpers at the airport.  We found a Starbucks at the airport which started our trip off in the right direction.  We are staying at a local college for the first few days until we move to the site of our first two games. 

The college that we are staying at is very nice! The facilities, food and staff are top notch and we have really enjoyed our stay. 

We went to the Forbidden City.  It was a hot and humid day and we walked around seeing everything.  My favorite part of the city was the garden at the very end.  It was beautiful with lots of plants, flowers and Chinese creations. 

Also, we went and climbed the Great Wall.    I don’t think I fully understood the magnitude of the Great Wall.  It is one of the “modern 7 wonders of the world” for very good reason.  I decided to venture out and try to climb the “hard” part of the wall.  Well, it was a very bad idea for a girl from Kalamazoo, MI who is scared of heights.  I made it up one set of stairs and one incline hill and then I felt my stomach drop and I had to grab the hand rail.  I couldn’t believe how steep the climb was.  The views were astonishing and I got several great pictures, but I only made it up a small portion of the wall.   After our climb, we found a Starbucks that was in the Great Wall and I added to my collection of coffee mugs and enjoyed a coffee.

We will be traveling to the site of our first and second games very soon.  It is only a 2 hour train ride from Beijing.  I will write more from there!

“Lindsay Tarpley, Come on down, you’re the next contestant on the Price is Right.” OK, so maybe that didn’t’ happen, but we did get to go to a taping of the Price is Right!

I don’t know about you, but I grew up watching the Price is Right. A few weeks ago while we were in camp in LA, we got to go to a taping and give away the show case show down.  I felt like a kid in a candy store because I was so excited to see how the show was created.  When we got there, we saw them setting everything up and tying up all the loose ends for the show.  We did a practice taping and then a few hours later we got to tape the actual show.  The contestant won a trip to Athens because that is where we won gold four years again in the Olympics.  We got to spin the wheel and see all the unique parts of the show.  I had a great time!  You can see a few pics on my website, www.lindsaytarpley.com 

Maybe next time I will actually hear, “Come on down!”  ha ha. 

The Olympic roster is finalized!  I feel very blessed to have been named to the roster.  It was officially announced yesterday on www.ussoccer.com.  I feel very fortunate to be able to represent the USA in such a unique event.  This will be my second Olympics, but I have the same feelings that I experienced four years ago.  I am really looking forward to the rest of our preparation before we get to China and, of course, when we actually get to the Olympics.  I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to represent our country. 

Sorry I did not keep you up to date with the Peace Cup.  Having games every other day made the last week fly by.  We beat Brazil 1-0, Italy 2-0 and Canada in the final 1-0.  The Peace Cup was an excellent tournament and it was a great win for our team. 

On our off day we got to visit the DMZ.  The DMZ is the line between North and South Korea.  I went two years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it.  This year we did more activities and I continued to learn about the history and present state of North and South Korea.  There are currently American soldiers that are serving in Korea and we had the opportunity to eat lunch with them and spend time with them.  I really enjoyed getting to meet the soldiers and learn what their life is like.  They do so much for our country! Plus, we got to eat burgers and fries…..it doesn’t get better than that!

I am home for a few days, but we leave Friday for Norway and Sweden.  We have two games over there and then we are in our final phase before we leave for the Olympics!

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer.