Toronto, the capital city of Canada? An illusion, of course, floated by egomaniacal Bay Street fatbacks who play in the TSE. Actually, "Ottawa" is the capital and the heavy action is divided between "Toronto" (financial), "Montreal" (culture), "Vancouver" (scenery), "Calgary" (oil), "Winnipeg" (wheat). I'm a born-and-bred Torontonian now living on the west coast and believe it's my right to crap on, or praise, my hometown. In this case to praise as RM's "Toronto International Spring Classic Car Collection" is coming up, April 13-15.

RM Classic Cars is best known for its high-end auctions in Scottsdale, Pebble Beach, Amelia Island and, this year, at the Ferrari headquarters in Maranello. The company is based, not in some exotic location, but in Chatham, Ontario, not far from the border city of Windsor which, my American readers might be startled to learn, is actually south of Detroit. (You'd be amazed at how much of Canada is south of the US; I mention this only to counter our nasty reputation on the weather networks as the place from where cold weather systems devastate southern states.)

The nice thing about RM's two Toronto auctions, one in the spring and one in the autumn, is that they feature "real" cars (meaning affordable Americans plus a few British collectibles) rather than million-dollar European classics. Anyone living in nearby Buffalo, Rochester, or Detroit can easily make it to "the International Center" and using the US buck's exchange rate, perhaps pick off a bargain. Leave your dog sleds in New York or Michigan, though. 90-degree heatwaves have been known to happen, even in chilly April.