Ah yes, two more meets in the same spot to talk about. In terms of experience, things were pretty much the same as they were the first time I was in Annandale minus the first-time excitement, so there really isn't an awful lot to say. Since that first Annandale meet was a positive experience, similarity wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
Attendance at the September meet was a bit less than that of the "Spring Thaw." Some noteworthy finds there: A West Virginia house trailer and odd truck plate; a North Carolina annual carrying my birthyear and initials, and a Tennessee plate with a slightly interesting serial. That meet was otherwise notable primarily for the fact that Joe Sallmen's car battery cables had a tendency to periodically disconnect themselves while on the highway.
The next "Spring Thaw" half a year later was a bit busier and a bit more fun. The real highlight was probably Richard E. Dragon of "Registered in R.I." fame, who popped on down from Rhode Island to photograph plates for his excellent "DCPlates" website. Like myself, Mr. Dragon has a penchant for variations, technical information, non-passenger types, and the registration history of smaller jurisdications, although obviously he's been in this business a lot longer than I have! Wish I had his book...
In terms of physical acquisitions, this spring's meet wasn't much: Just three 1985-dated plates for my birthyear run, two of which I came across with a little help. I actually found another Ontario plate with the same sticker the year before, but this natural "Yours to Discover" plate provided both an upgrade and a variation.
The donation auctions were endlessly amusing, as always (especially when a plate I had donated last time made the rounds again at the same event the following year) although this time I wisely kept quiet and didn't bid. A lesson learned from the previous year: Even if you win a boring blue-on-white Virginia plate with a palindromatic letter block combination for next to nothing, it's still a boring plate! My collecting interests are pretty narrow by this point: West Virginia stuff, August 1985 stuff, and anything with a serial combination I have some sort of sentimental attachment toward.
I'm not really sure what'll come after this. I'll probably visit Verona in a few weeks (even though last year I enjoyed the trip more than the actual meet), and I may even attend the ALPCA national convention in Alabama next summer if (of course) I have the means to do so. That's some time off, however...my license plate-related tasks will probably be limited to website maintenance until then!
![[Home]](../home.gif)
The Network![[Back]](../back.gif)
License Plates