Spaceflight Now: STS-92 Mission Report

Astronauts exchange friendly jabs in space
BY WILLIAM HARWOOD
SPACEFLIGHT NOW

Posted: October 16, 2000

  Mike LA
Discovery spacewalker Michael Lopez-Alegria. Photo: NASA/JSC
 
Before calling it a day, spacewalker Michael Lopez-Alegria took playful revenge today on crewmate William McArthur, a West Point graduate who sang - if one can call it that - the Army fight song during a spacewalk Sunday.

"Well, Bill, I can see how this (view) would want to make you break out singing," Lopez-Alegria said today, floating above Discovery's cargo bay. "Just don't sing that goofy fight song."

"Hey, hey, hey," McArthur laughed.

"Speaking of which, Bill, I have a song for you."

"Oh, I've been waiting for this," McArthur said.

At which point, Lopez-Alegria broke into slightly off-key verse:

"The goat is old and gnarly but he says he's been to school,
"But he can take the bacon from the worn out Army mule;
"He has no education, but he's brim and full of fight,
"And Bill will beat on Army mule tonight.

"By the way, that's not Bill McArthur, that's Bill the goat," Lopez-Alegria concluded.

"Hey Leroy, I've got a great idea, let's make Bill and Mike partners for the next EVA and see what happens," joked Jeff Wisoff, Lopez-Alegria's real spacewalk partner.

"That would be interesting," Chiao agreed.

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