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The Network7-18-2009: 2009 Erie Pa. ALPCA Convention, Part 4
Although my mind had reconciled the unfortunate news about Michael Jackson the evening before, by the point of Friday news had filtered in of yet another death that hit close to home: Keith Marvin, a veteran license plate collector whose periodic contributions to ALPCA's newsletter over the years (and lively tales of "tin chasing" in the 1930s) were required reading for anyone enthusiastic about the hobby. He will be missed.
With most other convention preoccupations and commitments out of the way, I took the opportunity to take a few photos of the many interesting license plate displays that people had put together for the event. Perhaps the single most impressive example was Gus Oliver's tasteful Oklahoma assembly, filled with an amazing variety of American Indian tribal license plates, contextual information, and memorabilia. One-of-a-kind displays included an arrangement of first plate issues of the first thirteen U.S. states (with many impossibly rare examples within), and an array of "Historically Significant License Plates from the F.D.R. Era" by Charles Gauthier. Almost all the displays, however, were impressive in their own right:
In terms of finds of the day, things were starting to slow down. I happened upon a couple of Manitoba license plates I wanted, and bought a lot of mid '80s Mississippis for a song to pad my trade box and get something that I wanted for my birthyear run.
For dinner, I followed Manny Jacob and Dave Steckley out to the Smugglers' Wharf, a seafood restaurant situated within convenient walking distance from the hall on a nearby pier. As luck would have it, we arrived at the place just in time to have the open option of a Friday special with all-you-can-eat fish. I wasn't disappointed: The food was fresh, satisfying, and delicious; the view and atmosphere were pleasant, and I had a great time conversing with other collectors over our meal.
The donation auction got underway soon after. (During the registration, I narrowly avoided the volunteer miskeying my name in as "Andy Turnball," but fortuantely that was one disaster averted.) The selections of items were the usual fare: Convention souvenir plates with low and repeating numbers; sample and prototype license plates donated by state and provincial DMVs; various bits of plate-related memorabilia (such as a couple of "United Plates of America" jigsaw puzzles), and the collector donations themselves; ranging the gamut from rare types to undesirable junk. Veteran ALPCAn Chuck Sakryd did an excellent job of providing a voice for the auction, with former president Mike Naughton periodically filling in as well.
Plate after plate and lot after lot went up on the auction block...and invariably, someone would snap it up. I occasionally get carried away with bidding at donation auctions myself, but this time that wasn't to be: The only license plate I saw that I found of interest was 1985 Rhode Island police plate number 182, and I dropped out of the bidding for that when the numbers went too high.
Although the auction was destined to last until the wee hours of the morning, by the fourth hour in I had had enough and decided to leave. I made my way out the door and into the streets; my senses and reflexes heightened by the state of being alone in a strange city at night. After passing by a few desolate corners, a few residents enjoying the nightlife, and a car blasting "Billie Jean" out open windows into the evening, I crashed back in at our hotel; joining Jon, who had given up on the auction even earlier than I did.