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Formerly the BACK BUMPER
Collecting Ontario licence plates for 41 years
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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Plate Adventures in July: Toronto / Merrickville
I had hoped to attend the ALPCA Convention in Tulsa this year, but a family priority came up and I had to cancel my reservations. But all...
Aug 15
Lindsay 2025
Lindsay had something for everyone this year… mud included! I’ve heard from unofficial-but-reliable sources that the AACA may be ending...
Jun 1
Stirling 2025
Eric Vettoretti and I teamed up for the Stirling antique Market this year, which we do by default unless other family commitments get in...
May 4
Back to Basics in Lindsay
It’s official – Lindsay is the new Barrie. A few years ago, I mused that the AACA automotive flea market event in Lindsay might...
Jun 2, 2024
Stirling '24
I hitched a ride with Eric Vettoretti to the 2024 Stirling Antique Flea Market. He couldn’t make it last year, but was able to this year,...
May 11, 2024
Fall Barrie '23 Photos
The Barrie Flea Market continues to be a shadow of its former self. It continues to offer fewer vendors, with much less to find in the...
Sep 14, 2023
Goodbye Bonfield
Four years ago, Eric Vettoretti and I decided to try the first edition of the Bonfield Automotive Flea Market. It was a fairly remote...
Jun 20, 2023
Stirling '23
This spring has been a tough one at work, and I’ve been feeling run-down at the end of the week. A nice day outside among old cars is...
May 21, 2023
Barrie Bust / Country Collection
I write about the Barrie Automotive Flea Market every time I go there. But the way things are going, I might not write about it again...
Sep 15, 2022
Lindsay '22
May ‘22 was a busy month for me as a plate collector, with no fewer than three out-of-town trips to gather metal rectangles. The previous...
Jun 1, 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...
May 6, 2022
No Food on the Plate in Barrie
I wrote a 2Cents post two years ago that says, “The trick to enjoying the Barrie Automotive Flea Market these days is to keep one’s...
Sep 13, 2021
Downfall Barrie
I hate to say it, but the trick to enjoying the Barrie Automotive Flea Market these days is to keep one’s expectations low. If I make the...
Sep 11, 2019
Leavings in London / Bargains in Bothwell
I was already thinking about taking my son on a road trip, when I suddenly received a phone call from a guy named John in London. He was...
Aug 29, 2019
Bonfield of Opportunity
Eric Vettoretti and I made some last-minute travel plans at the end of June so we could try out the new Bonfield Automotive Flea Market,...
Jun 23, 2019
Barrie, Orillia, and the Midland of Nowhere
I decided to go to the #Barrie Automotive Flea Market again this spring after a three-year hiatus. I've always gone to the fall edition...
Jun 15, 2019
Lindsay to Stirling: "This weekend's not big enough for us both"
With the end of April comes the beginning of May. Or, put another way, first there’s the Acton weekend, and then there’s the #Lindsay /...
May 12, 2019
Being a Boy in Barrie
15 years ago, or so, I brought my wife to the Barrie Automotive Flea Market. She figured it was just a weekend getaway of camping and...
Sep 15, 2018
Lights-out in Lindsay (and everywhere else)
A mere five days after arriving home from our sojourn to Acton, Eric and I were at it again, although with a more mercenary mission, this...
Jun 6, 2018
Not quite what the doctor ordered
It’s the first Friday after Labour Day. I’m tired. It’s been a frenetic week at work, but I’m finished there for the day, and I’ve...
Sep 10, 2017
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