March 1, 2025

By Simon J. Lau

It’s happening—my 40th birthday! A friend sent me an Instagram Reel today, and it hit me: technically, I’ve already been in my 40s since last year. Your birthday marks the completion of a year (e.g., turning 40 means I’m starting my 41st year on Earth today). Sounds obvious when I say it, but it’s not so obvious when you really think about it. Anyway, not to rain on my own parade, but I guess I’ve been in my 40s for a while now. No problem—I’m still celebrating today as if it were the start of a new decade!

As part of that celebration, Jean and I visited Amboy’s 1st Annual Car Show at Roy’s Motel. Having spent a lot of time on Route 66, I’ve come to really appreciate the history behind the Mother Road. Today, we saw a lineup of classic cars and motorcycles, and we finally got to visit Roy’s!

I was also hoping to see one of my favorite YouTubers, Wonderhussy. She makes videos about obscure Western desert towns—right up my alley. One of the places she recently covered, Goldfield, where Jean and I once spent a week so I could motorcycle around the desert. It was such a weird place, but we still talk about it today!

She had posted about this event earlier in the week, and Jean convinced me to hold off on visiting Amboy to today in the hopes that we’d run into her. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out—but no problem, it was still great to finally check out the town.

Afterward, we visited Amboy Crater—an extinct cinder cone volcano estimated to be around 79,000 years old. Standing 250 feet high and spanning 1,500 feet across, it was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1973. Since we had the boys with us, we didn’t have time to do the three-mile loop around and inside the crater, but it’s definitely something we’ll come back for on another trip!

Originally, we planned to drive to Palm Springs to celebrate my birthday tonight. However, after already spending three hours on the road (a round trip to and from Amboy), I wasn’t too eager to drive any more. Instead, we cooked the rest of what we had at home and enjoyed a quiet evening together with the boys.

One thing I appreciate about aging is that I care far less about expectations. In this case, I was more than happy to celebrate with a meal at home. At another point in my life, I probably would have forced myself to make the drive to Palm Springs just for the sake of it. But since we’ve never been, a quick dinner wouldn’t be nearly enough time to truly experience the town. It’s the perfect excuse to plan a longer trip there next time!

That’s a wrap! While I joked earlier that I technically started my 40s last year, I’ll end with this: I never thought I’d enter this decade unemployed, breaking my back trying to find work in a brutal job market. But at the same time, the past few years have been incredible: I motorcycled across Baja California, backpacked along and explored some of China’s longest waterways, and road-tripped across America (and back)! I’ve explored the world and pushed myself further than I ever imagined possible.

More importantly, I’ve never felt happier with who I am and who I spend my time with. Although I don’t know what tomorrow brings, I’m still excited for the future. There’s still so much more for us to see and do. Onward! 💪🏼