From
Misfit/Loser to
Hero/Inspiration: The
Inspirational
Transformation of Winston Wu
“Do
what you
love. The money
will follow.”
– A
quote encouraging one to follow their bliss toward
self-actualization which has worked well for me
Hello, my
name is Winston. I
am a Journalist, Writer, Actor, Traveler,
Photographer, and Marketer. I
consider
myself to be a Renaissance man, freespirit, Existentialist,
free-thinker,
nonconformist, philosopher, writer, actor, seeker, adventurer,
spiritualist, an
old soul, and lover. As
a result, I
connect with and prefer the company of open-minded, nonjudgmental,
free-spirited people who are intellectual and spiritually-attuned to
some
degree. And I
dislike and get along
least well with judgmental and closed/narrow minded people who have
rigid
beliefs about how things and people “ought” to be,
for those are my pet
peeves.
I am an
Asian American of Taiwanese
descent. But I am
unlike the typical
type which is career-minded, conformist, duty-driven, closed-minded,
judgmental, materialistic, money-loving, petty, mathematical rigid
thinking,
and unable to think “outside the box”. (In fact, a
Scotsman I met named Peter
who has been to nearly a hundred countries in his life, described me as
“probably the
most atypical Asian male” he had ever met.)
(You can also view my
critique of
repressive traditional Asian culture/mentality here)
Unlike most Asians who simply follow the pack and don't think for themselves, I do. Whereas most of them are rigid conformists, I am a freethinker and freespirit, which sometimes makes other Asians uncomfortable around me and avoid me. Also, they believe that the purpose of life is to work hard and suffer in glory and honor, while I believe that the purpose of life is to enjoy it and live to the fullest. Thus, me and typical Asians have some intrinsic differences.
As an
eclectic, I am a blend of Italian/French-like
traits. Though I am
wild, passionate,
free-spirited, sensual, romantic, and feeling, I am also intellectual,
shrewd,
insightful, cerebral, organized, and practical as well.
Such a blend makes me more like a European or
Latin than American or Asian, as I tend to have far more common with
the former
than with the latter.
I am
an Existentialist type of person who delights in reflection,
introspection,
asking big questions about the meaning of life, and trying to put it
all
together. Therefore,
I don’t have the typical
American/Asian view that life is all about making money and being
committed to
a career. Instead,
I share the
European/Australian attitude that life is about having new experiences
and
adventures, exploring the world and meeting lots of new people. And I judge my life and
self-worth by the
richness of my experiences, rather than by career status. That’s who I am,
not a conformist to what the
establishment tells me.
In
my experience, I tend to get along best and naturally with
travelers, free-spirits, New Age people, mystics, actors, writers, and
Europeans/foreigners. I have a natural comfort zone and
synergy with
those types and find them to be more wholesome and complete. My vibe, consciousness, and
soul energy seem to vibrate at a much more similar frequency with
theirs,
leading to a stronger sense of a more kindred spirit. On the
other hand,
I don't seem to connect or jive with the types of people who frequent
nightclubs or bars a lot, nor with the mainstream all-American
valley/hipster
types. Their vibe and consciousness seem to vibrate at a
different
frequency than mine, and their communication style seems plastic to me,
and
doesn't fit my communication style.
So
it feels awkward and unnatural trying to relate or interact with them,
like we
have very little to talk about, making them seem unapproachable to me. I don't know why, but this
pattern seems
consistent.
I
enjoy writing, acting, theatre, meeting people, traveling,
European culture/travel, photography, tennis, billiards, ping pong,
swimming,
martial arts, hiking, coin-collecting, chess, scrabble,
history, History
Channel, Travel Channel, PBS, British comedy, museums, science-fiction,
cooking, cultural events, 80's pop music, watching Twilight
Zone reruns,
vegetarian food, metaphysics, exploring mysticism, New Age
spirituality,
philosophy, paranormal phenomena, and just living life to the fullest.
I enjoy
all styles of music except country, rap, and heavy metal. I am a
vegetarian and
my favorite foods are Chinese, Italian, and Vegetarian cuisine.
I
think that most of the stuff on TV today is trash, and I
never watch network programming. The
only channels I watch are History Channel, Travel
Channel, PBS, AMC, and
sometimes BBC (British programming).
My sun
sign is Pisces with Scorpio rising
and Gemini moon (for those who don’t know, the rising
influences your outer
personality and the moon sign influences your inner self and emotions). And my Meyer-Briggs
temperament type
is ENFJ. My favorite movie is The Empire
Strikes Back. And
my favorite books, which I consider the
most profound and life-changing, are The
Power of Now and A
New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by
Eckhart Tolle, Way
of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman, any book or audio by Wayne Dyer, The
Holographic Universe by
Michael Talbot, and Under
the Tree by Greg Stone.
I’ve
lived in four
Since my
early days, I’ve shown a propensity to go “against
the grain” and think on my own.
For instance, during school, when all the other students
judged their
achievements by their grades (especially Asian students), I choose not
to attach my self-worth to my grades and saw no logical reason
to. Just because society, the school, or my parents told me
to
was not a good enough reason to convince me that grades determined my
achievement and self-worth. I had a far deeper sense of self
beyond the shallowness of academic scores. Thus, when I got
bad
grades, even D’s and F’s, they never really
affected
me. I also deviated from my parents’ Buddhist
religion at
an early age, becoming a born again Christian instead, unlike most
people who stick with the religion of their family their whole life,
never questioning it. And when I was 14, I tried debating my
church Youth Pastor on doctrinal issues (which was difficult because
though I knew my subject, he had a commanding presence and daily
experience as an orator while I was a shy timid boy, so I felt
intimidated and couldn’t get my point across properly; today
though, I’d cream his ass).
I have accomplishments (described below) in writing, acting, parapsychology, traveling, and spiritual development. The following chronicles the main events and highlights of my life from birth until present day.
Turbulent
and conflicting beginnings
(Note:
You can read a more comprehensive version of the next two
sections about
my childhood at www.happierabroad.com/Childhood.htm)
Born in
An only
child, I grew up in the California
Bay Area suburbs in the 80’s.
During
Kindergarten and First Grade in
You
can view my baby
and early childhood photos up to 2nd grade here.
But upon
moving to
Due to my
passion for life, desire to connect
with others, love and be loved, I was unable to accept this condition
and
strived against all odds. To
cope from
being alienated by the “mainstream norm” of the
adolescent crowd, I resorted to
intellectual pursuits and cultivated a rich inner life.
Having a natural feel for deep thinking and
analyzing at an early age, I was a chess champion who rarely lost a
game. And with a
knack for spelling and grammar, I
won my class spelling bee in 6th grade.
Religious
fervor and mental breakdown
Eventually,
my search for meaning led to
becoming a devout born-again Christian fundamentalist, where I found
solace, a
sense of hope and purpose. It
gave me
the power and reason to make sense out of my troubled and conflicting
childhood, as well as my unjust persecution by my peers (i.e.
“glory in the
persecution of the saved by the world”).
Impassioned with fervor, I became involved with Church
youth groups and
even planned to go into the Evangelical ministry.
After a few years, despite my fervor and
dedication, my life suddenly went through a series mishaps and
misfortunes,
which led me to collapse into depression and insanity.
This in turn served as a catalyst, unleashing
some sort of weird obsessive/compulsive anxiety control routine in me,
which
the establishment dubbed as a “mental disorder” at
the time. Whatever
it was, it put me in an “inner hell”
beyond my control and incapacitated me, growing worse daily with no
solution or
support in sight. I
was given medication
by mental health professionals, but they did nothing but give me bad
side
effects. Though
seemingly doomed by pain
and incapacitation for the rest of my life, my will to live endured and
kept me
alive. My
stubbornness and willpower
refused to succumb to my dire circumstances which seemed to warrant
suicide.
After
being taken out of the persecution of
high school where I was unable to function or study anymore (and where
my ego
and psychic shield were constantly being attacked by energy leeches), I
spent a
few weeks in a nice rehabilitation center and went on home schooling. When the year was over, I
spent a year in
Rebirth: A
new Winston emerges out of the ashes
When I
returned to the states, I was like a
new man; reborn, filled with an insatiable desire and talent for
expressing
myself. Suddenly,
asserting myself came
naturally. I
possessed an ability to
write and communicate articulately that I never had before, which
seemed to
come from nowhere. It
was like I was
suddenly filled with this “energy” inside me that
needed to express itself. In
addition, I possessed an inner confidence,
strength and optimism that few my age had.
And I was also blessed with an ability to appreciate the
beauty and
richness of the little wonders of life, which few have (something that
those
who lose their minds and return to sanity again seem to cultivate).
(You can
read the turbulent but inspiring
story I wrote about my deconversion from Christian fundamentalism in an
article
I wrote years later entitled My
Rise to Christianity and Transcendence
From It at these
links: http://www.happierabroad.com/Christian_Story.htm
(the latest version) or http://www.angelfire.com/me2/mccl/index.html
(the original but outdated version)
For
similar stories that postulate a metaphysical cause of mental
disorders, also
see http://www.successfulschizophrenia.com/stories.html).
A
major paradigm shift into metaphysical views
All this
led to a major paradigm shift
which expanded my view of reality.
The
victory over insanity, persecution, and doom gave me the strength and
inspiration to conquer my problems and put me on a path of discovery
which gave
me the interests I have today. My
spiritual quest moved away from orthodox religion into a search for a
“unified
theory” which explained and accounted for all religious and
supernatural
phenomena. This led
me into New Age and
metaphysical realms.
During my
post-deconversion research, I
also discovered that the Christian fundamentalist infallible doctrines
I
preached before were not what they claimed to be.
You can read a book length article detailing
the research and discoveries I made - a comprehensive point-by-point
debunking
treatise I wrote recently, entitled Debunking Every Argument of Christian
Fundamentalists and Evangelists which covers 15 arguments made by Christian
Evangelists and Apologists such as
Josh McDowell and C.S. Lewis, filled with scholarly citations and
quotations,
at this link:
http://www.happierabroad.com/Debunking_Christian_Arguments.htm. (FYI, a whole plethora of
scholarly articles debunking
every aspect and claim of Christian fundamentalism and the Bible can be
found
at www.secularweb.org
and www.geocities.com/paulntobin/central.html)
Post-graduation
life and first relationships
After
finishing my last year of high
school, I went to a community college and met my first girlfriend, a
cute
petite Vietnamese Accounting student named Phuong.
But after
two years together, we split due
to irreconcilable differences and incompatibility, but remained friends. (i.e. I was open-minded,
expressive,
imaginative, free-thinking and free-spirited, while she was judgmental,
materialistic, and closed-minded.)
Gradually, I realized and discovered that my soul and
destiny were not
fit for a conventional business career or the corporate culture, but
wasn’t
sure what the alternatives were. I
found
that I was too much of a “free spirit” and a fish
out of water in their
materialistic and conformist mentality.
My best talents and self seemed to lie in more creative
pursuits. Therefore,
I began to pursue acting in
addition to a business degree, got involved in theatrical and film
productions
at school, and worked in a few professional film productions (movies,
TV
series, commercials, and corporate videos) through casting/talent
agencies as
well. My acting
resume can be viewed at www.happierabroad.com/Resume_Acting.htm
and my business resume at www.happierabroad.com/Resume_Business.htm.
A few
years later, I graduated from
California State University Hayward with a business degree in Marketing and Computer Information Systems. Then I moved to
We lived
a nice life together of balance
and stability for two and a half years, and even got engaged to be
married. However,
unfortunately the
relationship forced me to live in an area of the state with little
career
opportunity, so I was forced to take a string of meaningless dead-end
jobs to
pay the bills. Eventually,
we grew apart
and discovered that we wanted different things in life.
The passion, chemistry, and energy between us
was also gone, and we both yearned to be free.
The split threw me into another state of psychological
trauma for the
second time in my life, since I had always been a hopeless romantic,
and a
believer in old-fashioned love, sticking through thick and thin.
My
writing accomplishments lead to recognition and fame in Parapsychology
community
To cope,
I immersed myself with my passions
and spiritual pursuits to an even greater degree.
During this time, I produced my greatest and
most acclaimed work (by the parapsychological community) by writing the
treatise Debunking
Pseudo-Skeptical Arguments of Paranormal Debunkers (http://www.happierabroad.com/Debunking_Skeptical_Arguments.htm
(updated version) and the original version at http://www.victorzammit.com/skeptics/winston.html),
an extensive point-by-point scholarly debunking of the arguments of
pseudo-skeptics (e.g. www.csicop.org,
www.randi.org, www.skepdic.com, www.skeptic.com)
which was the first of its
kind.
This work
gave me notoriety among the
metaphysical community and was endorsed by top parapsychology
researchers and
authors such as Dr. Gary Schwartz (www.openmindsciences.com),
director of the Human Energy Systems Laboratory of the University of
Arizona (http://veritas.arizona.edu/),
who
conducted famous scientific research with mediums, and authored books
such as The Living Energy Universe
and The Afterlife Experiments. And others, including Loyd
Auerbach (Editor
of Fate
magazine (www.fate.com)
and author of Mind Over Matter),
Dr. Victor Zammit (Australian lawyer, author, and afterlife researcher,
www.victorzammit.com),
and Whitley
Streiber of Unknown
Country (www.unknowncountry.com). I was even commended by
the famous and
controversial Israeli born psychic spoon bender showman Uri Geller (www.urigeller.com),
whose internationally
publicized psychic feats inspired the spoon-bending scene in the
blockbuster
movie The Matrix. Geller even
called me a few times to congratulate me with some nice pep talk.
Many
paranormal enthusiasts
considered it to be the “Gospel” against
pseudo-skepticism.
You can
read many public reviews,
endorsements, commentaries, references, and citations about this
noteworthy
work of mine at these links below:
http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=537
http://perdurabo10.tripod.com/id138.html
http://www.ep-ic.com/EP-IC/Mysteries/Archives/Mysteries141.htm
http://www.rense.com/general51/ebramce.htm
http://www.victorzammit.com/skeptics/
http://www.greatdreams.com/crop/hoax/hoax.htm
http://www.psicounsel.com/page9328-a.htm
http://www.psicounsel.com/wwudebunk1.html
http://www.nderf.org/NDE%20Rhetoric.htm
http://www.theosophy.com/theos-talk/200112/tt00274.html
http://blavatskyarchives.com/zeteticism.htm
http://www.tvtalkshows.com/board/showthread.php?t=24561
http://exchristian.com/forums/index.php?s=982272bf6a628e4d592d380bfda0dbcb&showtopic=2431&st=60
http://www.stardrive.org/Sarmail7-13-00.shtml
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/debunkingdebunkers/message/5587
http://www.freeinquiry.com/skeptic/resources/
http://zeal.com/category/preview.jhtml?cid=10023718
http://calbearssearch.com/p/browse/us1/us317914/us1157486/us56582/us10023718/
http://www.psi-infos.de/news2_02_-_geistiges_heilen_u_.html
(in German)
http://www.skeptizismus.de/rhetorik.html
(in German)
http://geocities.yahoo.com.br/existem_espiritos/refutando_os_ceticos.html (in Spanish)
http://www.tarotuk.co.uk/uk-tarot/pages/Verona-UFO-psychic.html
http://www.destiny-tarot.co.uk/91/Verona-UFO-psychic.html
http://www.destiny-tarot.co.uk/82/revealing-Tricks-on-doing-psychic-readings.html
http://www.horoscope-uk.co.uk/horoscope/61/Verona-UFO-psychic.html
http://www.sjgames.com/ill/2001/jun.html
http://www.vangarsse.com/jozefrulofforum/index.php?action=vthread&forum=1&topic=768&page=77
http://friendscommunities.org/archive/index.php/t-2501.html
http://www.bloginservice.com/talk/end_of_days/messages/167.shtml
http://www.bigfootforums.com/index.php?showtopic=5096&st=440
http://ipoh.com.my/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=7;t=000028
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t18612-0.html
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t19533-50.html
http://www.siql.com/arts/radio/radio_programs/radio_talk_show.8.htm
http://www.tapsforums.com/index.php?topic=36870.msg922511#msg922511
Also, if
you wish, you can read the
official rebuttal to my work from my opponents, the Organized Skeptic
groups,
at: www.skepticreport.com/tools/winstonwu.htm and a long internet forum discussion by
skeptics about it at: http://www.skepticfriends.org/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=1209&whichpage=2
This work
also led to my appearance on
several radio shows such as The
Forbidden Truth by Michael
Goodspeed, The Clyde
Lewis Show (KOTK 1080 AM) (www.clydelewis.com)
in Portland, Oregon,
and Ghostly
Talk Radio (you can listen to that interview online
in the archive
section of their website at www.ghostlytalk.com). Later, due to widespread
recognition, I was
invited to an international conference as a guest speaker at the Mysteries
of the World (www.mysterypark.ch)
theme park in
Though
well read in paranormal studies, I
did not limit my knowledge solely to books, but also participated in
interactive activities such as organized ghost hunts which gave me
fascinating
first-hand experiences of such phenomenon.
As a
critical thinker who hates
brainwashing techniques as a result of having been brainwashed a few
times
myself, I also wrote against scams and shady business practices such as
extended warranties and multi-level marketing.
See http://www.happierabroad.com/Sears_MA.htm
or (Consumer Affairs edited version at http://www.consumeraffairs.com/retail/sears_maint_con.html),
and http://www.happierabroad.com/Reasons_Sears_MA.htm. Also http://www.happierabroad.com/MLM.htm
And
recently, I’ve completed an article
about dealing with and avoiding elaborate and highly skilled scams in
I have
also written articles published in
various hard copy publications, such as
Rejuvenation
and expression in Nevada
To
finally conquer the trauma of my breakup
with my long-time ex, I went to live in Virginia City, Nevada (where
Mark Twain
underwent some sort of transformation and changed his name from Samuel
Clemens)
at the invitation of my friend John Benneth (www.marius.org),
a staunch advocate of homeopathy and one of the nemeses of the most
famous
paranormal debunker, James Randi (www.randi.org)
who is offering a controversial million dollar psychic challenge to
anyone who
can demonstrate supernatural abilities under controlled conditions
(details on
his site). There, I
stayed with Benneth
for a while and then got my own place.
(It’s been said that the best way to clean out
unhealthy baggage from
the emotional trauma of a breakup is by moving and putting yourself in
a
completely new environment to start a new life; well it’s
true.)
It was in
(In the
one on the right above, you can see
a blue orb, which is quite common among photos taken in
Piper’s Opera House and
is thought to represent ghosts and spirits haunting the area)
I also
did some work in commercials and
corporate videos through a model talent agency in
It was
also there that I met one of my best
friends, Michael Goodspeed (his pseudonym), one of the radio hosts who
interviewed me about the debunking skeptics article, and who also wrote
a
plethora of free-thinking articles published on the popular
paranormal/counter-culture site www.rense.com.
(You can Google his name to see tons of his articles on Rense.com and
other
sites)
He also
came to pursue some acting as well
as a change of environment from the dull vibe of
After
about 7 months though, the shows I
was involved in went into low season, my job at the model/talent agency
was
phased out, and my love affair with Danielle suddenly ended after some
bizarre
circumstances. While
visiting my parents
back home in
My
epic long odysseys to Russia and Europe
Returning
to
However,
instead I found myself making
plans to take a trip to the exotic lands of
At first,
I was hesitant and fearful to do
such an unconventional thing, but my willpower and sense of adventure
gave me
the courage to follow through on these plans and prepare a trip. And hence,
that’s how my famous and infamous
trips to
Overall,
finding a wife or a serious
partner was not as easy as I thought, nor was it as simple as the
marriage
agencies portrayed in their advertising.
However, I had the best time of my life.
I had many adventures and experiences which I otherwise
would never have
had. Some of them
were comical, while
others were downright dangerous (and thank goodness for my Guardian
Angels and
Spirit Protectors). Many
of my
experiences and stories were comparable (or even better) than the drama
in
movies. In
particular, the experiences I
had with con-artists, criminals and scammers, and their elaborate
plots, were
like grand black comedies. And
I was
able to easily form social connections whenever I wanted, since I
discovered
that the world outside the
Abroad, I
was able to get the things I
wanted and lacked in my adolescent teenage years that I never had -
being
popular, having fame, attention, an active dating life, partying, and
being
able to attract and get beautiful women easily whenever I wanted. And I experienced more
deeply and
dramatically the triumphs, glories, and heartbreaks of love. Thus, pretty much all my
teenage dreams
finally came true, as a result of these extreme and unorthodox ventures. I was even engaged to be
married twice during
my trips. One of my fiancées, Katya, was super hot and
looked like the girl of
my dreams, but she turned out to be nothing but a conniving gold digger
and
user:
My second
fiancée was nice, we just weren’t
compatible physically, mentally, or chemistry-wise.
But most
importantly though, I got the high
stimulation in daily life I craved and was deprived of in the states. So much in fact, that it
became emotionally
draining, and led me to realize that I ought to be pursuing more
spiritual and
wholesome ventures, instead of a neverending circle of hedonism.
One claim
of the internet marriage agencies
that is true though, which I can easily attest to, is that the quality
of women
in
Each time
I left and came back home though,
I’d feel flat and experience withdrawal symptoms, as my
experiences, status,
and the “vibe” there became an addiction for me. So I’d work some
temp jobs to save up money
for my next trip and return back again.
During the time between my second and third trips, I met a
local girl at
a New Age church in my town who quickly became one of my best friends
ever,
Amber.
We had an
instant connection, as though we
had known each other for years. In
addition to the interest in New Age spirituality, we also shared a love
of
traveling. In fact,
she became enamored and
envious about my journeys abroad (especially since she also viewed
normal life
in the states as a “rut” too).
In
essence, I was like a “gateway portal” to the
“worlds beyond”
Due to my
will and resourcefulness, in
During my
trips, I began and gradually
expanded on, a long point-by-point treatise comparing why I liked the
culture,
environment, and social scene of Russia/Europe more than America,
entitled Happier
Abroad: Why You Can
Have A Better Life
and Love Outside America (www.happierabroad.com/ebook.htm) I think it’s one
of my best works, and anyone
who has the slightest interest in culture comparison, or who can
emphasize and
relate to my situation, ought to read it.
It also contains two counter-culture sub-essays detailing
my viewpoint
of American life, Propaganda
vs. Real Life in America (http://www.happierabroad.com/ebook/Page30.htm)
and The
Industrial Culture of America:
Assimilation of an Automaton Populace (http://www.happierabroad.com/ebook/Page31.htm). To counter charges of
generalizing, I’ve
written this expose www.happierabroad.com/Politically_Correct_Fanatics.htm. And I started collecting
many quotes from
foreigners and immigrants about
Although
I believe in the American ideals
of freedom and democracy, I am opposed to its materialistic and
conformist
lifestyle and culture which constantly equates outward materialistic
wants with
happiness, depriving people of a rich inner life, inward happiness, and
a
foundation of inner strength and confidence.
I believe that this lack of inner self common amongst many
Americans is
a major cause in the following problems:
1) The high rate of mental illness, insanity, obesity, and
dysfunctional
behavior in America, 2) overly fragile egos and low self-esteem which
is easily
offended, and 3) the propensity to become bored and lonely so easily,
requiring
constant consumption stimulation and distractions to avoid facing inner
emptiness. These
issues are expounded
upon in my counter-culture essays above.
My
international online following begins and grows
During
these journeys I started writing
journal updates to a group of fans and interested onlookers which grew
from a
few dozen to nearly a thousand, with readers from all over the world. Soon I started receiving
regular fan mail
from those who read about my adventures and looked through my photo
journals on my
site. And I was
being discussed on
internet forums, where I quickly became the center of attention and
controversy. Some
found my writing too
brutally honest and open, making me an easy target for attacks from
critics and
armchair quarterbacks, while others found them informative and
engaging, as
though they were watching some sort of “Reality
TV”, which made them feel like
they were experiencing everything there with me.
(You can download and read the files containing
these journals, as well as view thousands of photos, from my site index
www.happierabroad.com/Articles.htm. Or read a synopsis of
these adventures at www.happierabroad.com/Synopsis_Russian_Adventures.htm)
You can
view a collection of feedback
letters and comments from my supporters and fans at www.happierabroad.com/Supporters_Fans.htm
and www.happierabroad.com/ebook/Reader_Responses.htm. There you will see
hundreds of intelligent,
insightful, genuine letters from those who “see the
light.”
I also
collected some rants from critics
and bashers for a while, and put them up at:
www.happierabroad.com/Critics_Bashers.htm
One of my
critics became my arch nemesis, “Dave
Fuller”, an Australian man also involved in the Russian bride
field, who has
been quoted in the Sydney Tribune.
Fuller’s witty humor, dry sarcasm, mean-spirited
tirades, and vicious
attacks on me became a regular thing, and was shown to my reader lists
by both
him and I. Little
by little, he started
and perpetuated an entire campaign against me, which continues to this
day. His relentless
ruthless attacks
were not only limited to rants, but faked press releases, poems, songs,
and
comic photos as well, meriting the title of being called my nemesis. I had found my match in
flame wars with this
rivalry. Since he
was the man who
regularly attempted to bring me down during “my
show”, I began comparing him
vs. me to arch villains like “Lex Luthor” vs.
“Superman”, “The Riddler” vs.
“Batman”, “The Master” vs.
“Doctor Who”, etc.
Since Fuller liked being cast as “The
Riddler”, he adopted it as his
pseudonym against me. Though
I hate to
admit it, I sort of enjoy having an arch enemy for in a way it gives me
a
morbid feeling of importance, elevating my adventures to the status of
a drama
show worthy of significance and attention.
You can see a section of my site that I dedicated to him
at www.happierabroad.com/Dave_Fuller.htm,
containing his wittiest and most mean-spirited anti-Winston works.
I also
put up a section on my site listing
the villains of my adventures, entitled The
Hall of Villains,
which includes their photos.
Later on,
some anonymous fans even put
together a music video of me and my adventures, put together from clips
of my video
footage. It’s
a funny, entertaining parody of me and
my style. You can
view it online
here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_SnBp5f39E (Make sure to turn on the
sound so that you
can hear the song lyrics which are synchronized with my
actions/movements in
the videos.)
The
height of my fame reaches a national level in three countries
It
was during my third and longest journey in
Later on,
my adventures were also featured
in
Transformation,
cultural expansion, and a step toward self-mastery
On my
third trip in
Eventually,
I concluded that Russian women
probably aren’t for me.
Though among the
most beautiful in the world, they are too greedy for my taste, as well
as
stingy, taking, opportunistic, ungiving, stubborn, conscienceless,
manipulative, deceptive, changeable, and hypocritical, all in extreme
degrees. In
addition, several strong
conflicts exist between my mentality and theirs.
Overall, as I and many others have learned,
in the big picture the risks of being involved with women in
And other
attractive good prospects I left
behind, such as:
(Note:
If you enjoy seeing pictures of these Russian women such
as the ones I
was involved with above, you can see hundreds more in my photojournals
and photo
collages)
But
according to advice from friends, my
better prospects lie in the Eastern Russian regions and former Soviet
Republics
such as Uzbekistan, Kazakstan, Krygyzstan, etc. which are far more
Asianized
and accepting of my race, and have women who with better values. Other great choices I
heard include
I can
also say that whatever the results
from my long odysseys in
I've
also come to realize that I've derived some meditational benefits from
my
trips. You see, one of the primary purposes of meditation is
to reduce
the mind's attachments - such as clinging to pleasure/assets and
resisting
pain/undesirable conditions. But my restless nature and ADD
symptoms
prevent me from practicing regular meditation. However, I've
achieved
similar results. With all the constant traveling I did, I
constantly
detached from the people and environment around me, to the point where
it
became a habit, like second nature. With all that practice in
detachment,
I am almost able to detach my mind and emotions at will, a benefit
similar to
that achieved in meditation. But of course, the other aspect
of
meditation of attaining a still mind, eludes me, as I am basically
still a
restless and wandering spirit, thriving on novelty and new
people/experiences,
rather than stable routines.
Last but
not least, I gained valuable
career experience in professional Journalism which I wouldn’t
have been able to
get in the
In
addition, I believe that I‘ve also discovered the secret to
happiness. I've become aware that external things or people
do not
directly cause "happiness", they merely trigger the biochemicals
inside us that make us feel that way. What I've discovered is
that we can
learn to trigger these biochemicals that make us happy at will, through
training, practice, and awareness meditation. One merely has
to realign
the biochemical reactions inside us, reprogramming them to respond
differently and breaking old cycles and addictions.
It would take
some time of course, but it's possible. And I've already had
a lot of
practice, as I've managed to keep myself happy in that way through
thick and
thin, even through disappointment and disaster. Thus,
it’s led me one
step closer to self-mastery. And as the ancient undefeated
Chinese
general Sun Tzu said, "The one who conquers a thousand nations is not
as
great as the one who conquers himself."
My
post-trip crossroads
After my
Europe/Russia trips, I was at a
crossroads. My
choices are to either 1)
return to Europe to travel and work, since my expressive nature fell in
love
and felt at one with its culture and social environment, 2) follow my
dream
years ago of going to Hollywood to pursue an acting career, 3) move to
the
Southwest part of America where the beautiful desert terrain and
canyons have a
very invigorating spiritual and social energy, or 4) begin pursuing
some type
of Journalism or mass media career, the niche I discovered in myself
while in
Russia.
New
birth in the Philippines
After
doing a lot of soul searching, I
decided to go to the
So it was
either go back to
Though I
hadn’t been that attracted to
Asian women before, Filipinas had Eurasian features (due to them being
a mix of
Asian and Spanish) such as the rounder eyes, and are more well-endowed
in the
chest than other Asians, such as Chinese and Japanese.
Also, they are more outgoing, like me, than
the other typically shy Chinese, Japanese, and even
So, after
taking a road trip through the
beautiful desert Southwest USA during the Summer of 2006 for a few
months,
enjoying the beloved desert canyons and terrain that I longed for,
quelling my
desert fever, and doing a lot of soul searching, I decided to head for
the
Philippines with the help of a friend in Hawaiia whom I met from my
mailing
list. He was also
looking for a serious
partner and was persuaded to choose the
After I
went to
I now
find Filipinas to be the best match
for me, in so many ways. They
are so
attractive and exotic (the ones here are better looking than the ones
in the
For more
details, you can read some of my
raving ecstatic updates from the
www.happierabroad.com/ebook/Page93.htm
www.happierabroad.com/ebook/Page94.htm
After a
series of relationships, I finally
found a great girl named Dianne to be serious and steady with who is a
“keeper”
for me. She has it
all in terms of
personality and looks. Not
only does she
looks like a model, is very pretty, and has a sexy body, but is also
kind,
funny, interesting, charming and devoted to me in a way no one else
ever has been.
For the first time in my life, someone I really love,
desire, and am
very attracted to, feels the same way about me.
As you can see, we now have a baby son together, who is our gift from heaven :)
You can
see a collection of the best of our
pictures at:
www.happierabroad.com/Winston_Dianne.htm
Launch
of my new website skyrockets and gains me hero/legend status
Eventually,
I began my own website: www.happierabroad.com
to disseminate information about how one can have a better life abroad
and
completely turn their love life around.
It also became a support network bringing together people
dissatisfied
with life in
To
inform, demonstrate and prove to the dissatisfied in America that beyond
the country exists a superior opportunity and greater freedom to pursue
and fulfill their desires in the areas of love, romance, relationships,
friendships, adventure, cultural exploration and soul enrichment. To offer a
real though unconventional solution to the millions of men who are lonely,
dateless, and sexless in
Or simply put,
You
can live
a fuller richer life by simply stepping BEYOND the
If you agree with the Mission
Statement, then please
forward the link
to this ebook to as many people you
know who would benefit from it. There are
millions of Americans
living in FEAR and ISOLATION because the
And the
main index of all my links can be
found at www.happierabroad.com/Articles.htm.
With
steady growing traffic and site hits,
I learned that I could make some residual income by putting up online
ads on my
pages. So I
implemented the idea and now
make a small residual income from them.
Hence, I found a way to profit from doing what I love, in
accordance
with the saying at the top, “Do
what you
love. The money
will follow.”
At this
point, my site is still growing in
popularity and expanding daily with new features making it more
elaborate. As my
readership grows, I am getting more and
more great fan letters and testimonials of changed lives or heightened
awareness resulting from my writings, photos, testimonials, and stories. And so I often get letters
with statements
such as:
“Your
ebook was refreshing. I thought I was the only one who
thought this way about American social climate.”
“Your
website truly is a treasure! It's making me more
self-aware in areas that I may have been slipping into "typical
American
mode" in, and is opening my mind even more.”
(See
Appendix A below for more quotes)
With the
addition of a Discussion
Forum (http://www.happierabroad.com/phpBB2/index.php) on
my site and new
Blogs (http://www.happierabroad.com/Blogs.htm), it will soon
become a major player in the
expatriation
movement. After
all, how can it not,
when I virtually have no competition since I’m the only one
providing tons of
REASONS and INSIGHTS how and why one can find love, happiness, and a
better life
abroad,
representing so many people out there who otherwise have no other
representation and didn’t even know that there were others
who felt the same
way. No one else is
writing what I am
writing to the degree that I’m writing.
Thus I think I can safely and validly say that I am
probably currently
the BEST voice out there for those who don’t fit into
Some have
even declared me as:
“Despite
all the flak you get you are certainly
an interesting character and probably the most famous (or infamous)
self-made
asian on the internet”
Some
people are so impressed and
inspired by my life, adventures, and works that they've called me a
“hero", "legend" and
"inspiration"! Go
here
to see for yourself. Extremely
few people in life get the honor of being called a
“hero” or "legend", even among successful
people! So
in effect, by going
ABROAD, I’ve been
transformed from a MISFIT/LOSER in
Thus, one
of my
long-time advisors and quote contributors to my site, put me in this
light:
“Winston
you are now an Asian
American Moses, and you are leading your people out of the
“captivity” of
boredom, loneliness, lovelessness and datelessness to the various
promised lands
of milk and honey, many honeys that is and milk is to come later.
Lol.”
As an
increasing number of Americans feel
the way we do and become enlightened about the real world outside the
During my early childhood, our family fortune-tellers said that someday, I would be a leader of some sort and help people. At the time, I couldn’t see how that could possibly come true since I was shy, timid, and selfish. So I brushed it off. But now, I see that perhaps that prophecy is beginning to emerge.
Thank you
for your time, attention, and
interest if you’ve read this far.
My index
site containing all links can be
accessed at http://www.happierabroad.com/Articles.htm. You can contact me with
comments or questions
by email at WWu777us@yahoo.com.
Best
Regards,
Winston Wu
Appendix A:
Great quotes
about me from readers, fans, and advisors
(Taken
from
fan
mail,
forum postings and in person conversations)
“People
can be divided into three groups
Those who make things happen
Those who watch things happen
And those who wonder what happened
You are in the first group Winston”
“Despite
all the flak you get you are certainly
an interesting character and probably the most famous (or infamous)
self-made
asian on the internet”
“Hey
Winston...I see you’re
famous. Maybe not quite receiving the positive feedback that you might
have
been hoping for but nevertheless, you can see how much your stories of
your
adventures and thoughts have affected others. As I always say, the show
must go
on.”
(From
my guestbook http://www.happierabroad.com/Guestbook_archive.htm)
“Your
tenacity is
astounding. All the stuff you went through. Most people would have
given up.”
“Winston, even though i don’t agree with all you are doing there, i do support your adventures and would to commend you doing what many guys are far too chickens*** and cowardly to do ..so my h