Classic Cold Snap story

Yesterday, I wrote a post about my horse Cold Snap.  It got me thinking about memorable incident that happened out at the barn in 1996 when I was a sophomore at college.  I remember writing up the story and sending it to my family, but I can’t find that cleaned-up version.  Instead, here’s a copy of a note I sent to my friend Anne describing that exciting day.

saturday is my day of fun and excitement…

I woke up at 9 and went right out to the horse.  This is the FIRST time i have gotten out there is two weeks.  I needed to see them so much.  It was great.  I drove out there and it was nice to get a chance to just drive and look at the drying cornfields and the sun and blue sky and other people doing non-college activities:>

Oh, Annie, I saw a tree that was so pretty I thought of you.  It was mostly green but the top layer of leaves was turning orange it looked like a burnished orange crown or perhaps more like a fairy had come by and sprinkled magic redish orange pixy dust all over the top.  So pretty in the sunlight:)

So when I got out to the horse, I got their halters and walked out into the pasture and they both ran over, and I pet them and talked to them and tried to figure out who to take out first.

I figured that since _I_ hadn’t had horse experience in a couple weeks I should start out with Valentine.  So I took her out and  put her in the upper barn where I brushed her off.  Meanwhile, I hear Cold Snap starting to run back and forth along the pasture outside of the barn.  He sounded really upset.  I went out and talked to him for a few moments and told him I would take him out in a little bit.  I asked him to calm down.  Well, he didn’t, and this is what happened.

The Interesting Story:

I was in the barn brushing off Val, and Cold Snap starts really making like an insane horse, running frantically across the whole pasture.  He was REALLY upset and running like Secretariet…dirt flying up behind of him.  Actually, it was kind of cute.  My baby had missed me and didn’t want me to be working with Val.  Hey, I was liked.  Hey, what was he doing?  What is that noise?  ohmygod! He was crashing throught the fence!  He was breaking the boards in half!  He was down in the mud!  He was up and leaping through the broken fence!  I ran from Val.  (thank goodness she ground ties well…), and by the time I got to the garage, Cold Snap was coming around the corner to find me.  Snorting, pawing, “I’m out, Mom, I came to find you, Mom.”  “Everything is good, Mom.” “I didn’t know I was that strong Mom.”
Good gracious, you stupid, stupid horse!! So I got a halter on him and put him and Val in stalls in the barn.  (Oh he was fine if he was with Val) then I went out to survey the damage and prevent the other horses in the pasture from getting loose!  Yes sirree.  My well-behaved little baby broke straight through three boards.  broke.  sigh.  well one of the other horses was standing at the break..eating some grain on the other side of these broken boards.  He was like “hmmm.  this is kind of neat.  look, I can _eat_ this grain by just sticking by head through this nice absence of fence.”  So I put the other horses in a different paddock and left Barbara a long note explaining what had happened.

Ahhh, memories!  I do enjoy that story.  And it’s sure to make my brother laugh really big:)

Unrelated but silly pictures of me and Val: