if writing should laugh, not weep

Then, so that he would be a good rider (especially of horses) all his life long, they made him a lovely big wooden horse, which he made to prance, jump, canter, charge, and dance all at once, as well as walk, pace, trot, gallop, amble and go the pace of a hobby, a hackney, a camel and an onager. And he made it change the colour of its hair, as monks change their chasubles, depending on feast days: bay, sorrel, dapple grey, rat colour, roan, cow, speckled, skewbald, piebald, white. And he himself, using a big beam set on wheels, made himself a hunting horse, and another one from the beam of a winepress for everyday use, and from a great oak a mule with a horse-cloth for his bedroom. And he had ten or twelve more for relays, and seven to act as post horses. And he had them all sleep next to him. [Raelais]

(do I even have to say that I most love the hobby horses sleeping next to the giant boy, hobby horse nighttime snuggling)