About - Biography | VanTrinh.com

Vietnam

1985 — I was born on June 14, 1985, in the rice fields of Vietnam. Our family was very poor as the country was still recovering from the war. There was a massive food shortage, and times when we went days without access to meat. In 1988, when Mom was pregnant with her third son—Dad, being the risk‑taker that he is—decided to take a chance at escaping a war‑torn country in search of a better future. After hearing through the grapevine that America was accepting refugees, he pooled money with a dozen friends and bought a 20‑foot fishing boat. The only memory I have of this place was when Mom took me to a small shack in the middle of a rice field. We knocked on the door and told a very old lady that we were leaving and we might never see her again. I later asked Mom about this. She said she didn’t remember, because she had told no one except close family. This was my oldest memory, and I have no idea where it came from. Imagine having to tell your family and friends that you were leaving everyone and everything you’ve ever known to travel to unknown lands, in the hopes that the grass is greener on the other side. Approximately 500,000 Vietnamese refugees died at sea—half of the people who embarked on this journey.

The Boat

1988 — It was in the middle of the night. We had packed enough food and water for the trip. At the very last moment, our family decided that my uncle—who was a troublemaker and wasn’t doing anything with his life—would join us and take a chance at turning his life around. We uncovered the boat buried underneath some trees, then off we went. The trip was gruesome, and Mom was very sick while pregnant. We ran out of food and had to land on shores to steal from locals, usually in the middle of the night so we wouldn’t be detected. After three months at sea, the boat was leaking badly, so we decided to land on the shores of Hong Kong and swam the final few meters. We had finally made it. As soon as we touched land, everyone was taken into refugee camps, where Mom and Dad lied about their age to be better suited for work on foreign land.

Hong Kong

1989 — After a few months we were released from camp. Dad found work in construction, and we stayed on the second floor of a one‑room wooden apartment. My brother Tac and I started attending school, where we would learn Cantonese. This was where my youngest brother Tien was born. I remember one rainy night, Dad was extremely sick, so Mom gave me some money to run to the store and buy him cigarettes. I ran through the streets of Hong Kong, got to the store, picked up a pack of cigarettes and chewing gum for myself, then ran back through the rain. I was only four. I know this story may sound cliché; I guess it’s more common than you’d think.

Quebec

1990 — News came in the form that our family was accepted by the province of Québec in Canada, so we hopped on a plane and flew toward yet another foreign land. Our family spent six months in Québec City, went to public school, and took advantage of amenities like social welfare and government housing. We got in touch with our uncle who was residing in Toronto at the time; he convinced us to move there, where there are more people like us. He showed up with a friend in a flatbed truck in the middle of the night. We packed up everything we owned, then headed west, yet again. Lying there on a mattress on the back of a 12‑foot container felt eerie, yet familiar at the same time.

Chatham-Kent, Ontario

1993 — In Toronto, we moved around a lot—jumping from school to school and never really settling in. We ended up three hours south in a small town called Chatham‑Kent, where all the kids would attend Catholic elementary and high school. The ’90s rang bells of nostalgia: from Sega Genesis to school dances to long bike rides on summer breaks, and I made many lifelong friends. This was where my sister Ellen was born.

Taekwondo

1995 — Mom and Dad enrolled us in Taekwondo for a better part of the decade, where we would take home provincial and national championships. I’m a martial artist—through and through—from Taekwondo to boxing to kick‑boxing to jiu‑jitsu to Muay Thai, and I fought pro in Thailand.

Jesus — School Play

1998 — In grade 8, I got to play Jesus at the school play. Mr. Thus walked into the class and asked, “Who wants to play Jesus?” Nobody said anything, so I raised my hand. In the end, it was between me and a girl. We picked straws; short straw wins. I picked the short straw. In the same year, I won the art award from my graduating class.

Computer Programming

2004 — I got my first computer at 15 and knew right away that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. After high school, I enrolled in computer programming at Fanshawe College in London. From there I moved to Guelph in search of work; it came in the form of a small mailing company in Hamilton as a database programmer. I moved there and got a one‑bedroom bachelor apartment on Ferguson Street on the 17th floor. At this time, Dad had put the family through more hardship through his risky investments. We agreed to move in together, so they packed up, left Chatham, and moved into my apartment. We later bought a house together.

MMALinker

2006 — This was around the time I started dabbling in entrepreneurship. One night, I called my brother Tien up about something called the UFC and asked if he wanted to start a website. It immediately hit it off, accumulating over 200,000 users in a few short months. We later sold it, and I used the money to leave my job to start a web consulting company. These were the best times of my life. The company was successful. I had lots of friends and plenty of time to excel in various combat sports.

Minh – Love

2008 — This was when I met my future wife, Minh. It was a rocky start, but we didn’t care, because we were madly in love and determined to make it work. We traveled a lot—from coastlines to towers to roads and lands and seas. She would always push me to experience life more. I proposed to her, and we got married on July 15, 2015.

The Zeitgeist – Philosophy & Comedy

2016 — In 2016, I started dabbling in standup comedy, philosophy, and writing on cultural issues. Dr. Jordan Peterson appeared, so we snuck into one of his classes at the University of Toronto and questioned him on the topics of Jung, Dawkins, and archetypes. I released “Jordan Peterson’s Top 10 Truths.” Sam Harris invited Jordan back onto his podcast on the same day, then they went on tour together. First city: Vancouver.

The LSD Confession

Nov 9, 2019 — I took 200 mg of LSD at home alone. When my wife came home, she found me naked under a blanket, giggling to myself. We talked all night. I told her my deepest, darkest secret. She cringed. She told me not to tell anyone. I agreed. COVID‑19 emerged in Wuhan, China, within the same week. Out of fear and uncertainty, I quit my job. She was scared, so she wanted to leave. We sold the house and finalized our divorce.

The Black Belt – Inheritance from the Dead

Aug 3, 2023 — During COVID, I received a message from a childhood training partner. Master Sun passed away and left something behind for me. It was my black belt, found in his storage unit.