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Collecting Ontario licence plates for 40 years
THE
BACK
BUMPER
2CENTS ARCHIVES
First started as "My 2 Cents" in 1997, I have written posts numbering into the hundreds. New posts arrive continually. Find an article by clicking the tag cloud below, or selecting a category, doing a search (see magnifying glass below on the right), or just scroll down to see the articles in chronological order.
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Apr 29, 2024
Acton '24 and Afterward
Saturday was Acton-packed, let me tell you. I woke up in Milton, spent five hours in Acton, drove to Brantford, Took a coffee break in...
252 views
1 comment
May 4, 2023
Acton at Centre Ice
The Acton meet came full circle this year—and my, how things have changed. The inaugural Acton swap meet, now 20 years ago, happened on...
287 views
1 comment
Apr 2, 2023
Making the 2023 Ontario Souvenir Plates
It was a summer afternoon in 2022: I found myself at the town park in sleepy Rossmore, Ontario, swapping plates with Dave Steckley and...
149 views
1 comment
May 7, 2022
Acton & Stirling '22: Back in the Saddle
Thirty months. It sounds like a jail sentence. But that’s how long it’s been… Thirty long months since our last indoor swap meet in...
328 views
0 comments
Mar 28, 2020
Acton meet cancelled: COVID-19
The 2020 Acton licence plate swap meet is cancelled because of the COVID-19 emergency. Read on about COVID-19 (I'm a biology teacher).
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May 6, 2019
The Long Road to Acton 2019
The best kind of road trip involves a proper balance of driving, nice weather, good food, laughs, and of course, finding licence plates...
308 views
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May 7, 2018
Amigos in Acton
I always know it’s been a great #Acton trip when I spend a week recovering before I have the energy to write about what a great trip it...
294 views
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May 4, 2017
Acton up
My trip to #Acton this year was a little abbreviated. I always hope to rise early on the Saturday and take my time checking out junk...
135 views
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Apr 30, 2016
Auction in Acton
If it feels good, do it. And if it works well, do it again. That was the theme for this year’s #Acton journey. Last year, before the...
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Apr 29, 2015
Acton 2015
The winter of 2014-15, unbelievably, was even colder than the year before. It took a lot of mental energy to cope, but we’re finally...
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May 6, 2014
Acton in the arena
#Acton in the spring… the trees are still bare. The snow is gone. The sun is out (usually). The air is cool. And the plates? Don’t get me...
44 views
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May 7, 2013
½ Acton
Spring is here—it’s a beautiful sunny day, the windows are open, birds are singing, leaves are sprouting, and I’m leaving to get my ’71...
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May 19, 2012
These magic moments
For the past couple of years, when Eric and I have gone to the Acton swap meet together, we’ve planned out a unique route and left early...
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May 12, 2011
Twofer one
The annual Acton swap meet has usually been held during the third weekend in April, but for this year, its ninth, the date was changed to...
42 views
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Apr 25, 2010
Plates and parenting in Acton
This year, I brought my daughter to the Acton swap meet— a compromise to avoid leaving my wife at home with a nursing infant as well as...
52 views
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Apr 26, 2009
Old antiques a man alone can entertain
I was stoked, stoked, stoked to go to Acton this year. I had about the busiest winter of plate collecting ever, having bought three big...
110 views
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Apr 25, 2008
Crap we like
Eric and I rolled into the Acton Arena parking lot early this year… possibly too early, given that it was 7:15. We wanted to have our...
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Apr 30, 2007
Acton and Actinolite
I made it to this year’s Acton swap meet, having missed the 2006 edition because of an imminently-arriving baby. The baby did arrive, and...
63 views
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Apr 23, 2005
Acton or rust
Acton 2005 featured some rare Ontario plates, such as a '21 dealer and a set of '39 doctors... and a never-before-seen 1932 IEC plate.
121 views
1 comment
Apr 21, 2004
A piece of the Acton
I think I’m going to make an annual point of descending upon Acton with my fellow collectors, for as long as springtime swap meets are...
153 views
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