On the way to pick the kids up from daycare last night, I drove past a Nissan something-ma on its roof. There were two police cars there, lights on, and two officers directing people around the car. It was alone. There was no excess of shattered glass, other vehicle, or ramp to indicate to me how this car had gone wheels skyward. I was baffled. At a red light I attempted to take a picture, but as you can see it isn’t very good.

On the way back from daycare — and I’m not joking that this was only ten minutes later, a firetruck came blasting up the hill on the same street, Martha, about ten blocks away.  The right lane had a truck in it, sitting at the light, then a car, then me with my children. The turn lane had a car in it so the firetruck had to go around them to make a wide right turn. As the firetruck, lights and sirens blazing, made this maneuver, the truck in the front, which I can only assume was piloted by a drunk or a social media addict, lurched forward as if racing another car, and t-boned the fire engine. The engine stopped, half a dozen firefighters got out, and I found myself wondering if the fire they were heading for was now going to burn something to the ground, thanks to the idiot in the truck.

People need to slow down.

Last night Sonja made a beautiful dinner of squash, pork roast, and onions. The roast was especially moist and flavorful. Naturally, we paired it with wine. Dinner at night, with my family and often paired with wine, reminds me to slow down and catch my breath in the evenings. I’ve become accustomed to not getting everything done, and I’m starting to be okay with that. I need my downtime, my quiet family time, my slowness.

The 2014 Inconceivable Cab Sauv from the Columbia Valley is well-conceived to say the least. With a label that offers something of a brief tutorial on the Missoula Floods that shaped Washington’s wine growing regions, winemaker Kendall Mix has crafted a wine that is bold, a beautiful deep purple in color, and teeming with flavor. Dark fruits — blackberry, dark cherry, mingle with flavors that came on as part of the extensive 23-month oak regiment, including saddle leather, a slight earthiness, and maybe a hint of chocolate toward the finish. At 14.5% it’s big enough without being overbearing, and the wine is limited to just under 2,000 cases. At $25 a bottle, it’s a good value, and a good way to start your relaxation at night, take a deep breath, eat dinner, converse with loved ones and, most importantly, slow down.

Cheers to slowing down (and to not driving like an idiot),

Mark