Alex Barnes

As I have only recently had confirmation that my old friend Alex Barnes is deceased, I thought it right to put up a short memoir of him


Alec with his trusty Leica in 1969

It was while I was working at a shop called Gearco that I met him.   The shop sold both transmission machinery and photographic supplies.  I was about 19 and he was in his 30s so he did seem very "old" to me at the time but we got on well nonetheless. Alex was interested in photography and originally came in to buy photographic supplies and talk to George Smith. He and George were in some sort of photographic club together.

One place where I saw Alex out of working hours was on Sunday afternoons at Centennial Park -- where I went to heckle the soapbox orators and he went to get candid photographs.

On various other weekend afternoons I would also drive out to his place in my little blue VW sedan and we would listen to old records together and drink coffee. Alex invited me to call on him after I expressed an appreciation of Caruso. Alex had a collection of old Caruso 78s (78 r.p.m. records). So we would spend very enjoyable afternoons together listening to old records and chatting.

It was by going out to Alex's place that I learnt that I was caffeine-sensitive. Alex would always brew good coffee which I greatly enjoyed having with him. When I got home that evening, however, I would be WIRED -- very hyped up and unable to sleep that night. So I eventually learned to avoid the coffee.

 I found Alex to be a very kind, intelligent and sensitive person but very lacking in self-confidence. For that reason I was always very supportive in whatever I said to him and Joy was amazed when she saw me interacting with him in the same way many years later (I introduced Joy to him on the way to our honeymoon destination in Cairns). She did not know that I was capable of having supportive friendships.

Alex married an old girlfriend of mine, Joyce Hooper -- also now deceased. I used to see a bit of them until Joyce took exception to something I said -- after which I was persona non grata

Alex and Joyce had three children but it was not a happy marriage