Obituary Collection: Alex Mathieson
Six years ago yesterday, my friend Alex passed away on what was supposed to be the day his daughter Genevieve and I were going to host Supper Club together. Alex's birthday party in 2007 was actually the event that inspired his son-in-law to start Supper Club in the first place, so it's sort of fitting that it's more or less gone defunct since his passing.
Alex and his wife Cynthia were the only parents of any of my friends to become my friends ( Mark was family) themselves, a distinction in which I was probably not unique among Genevieve's friends. I first met them at a wedding in Chicago on November 11, 2000. I was completely and totally hammered and happened to sit next to them on the bus back to the hotel. Apparently I somehow made a good impression, because when gieves formally introduced them to me the next morning at brunch they were quite amused and welcoming. It's still one of Cynthia's more amusing stories. I then ended up at their house for Boxing Day, probably starting in 2002 and certainly in 2003. I recall I sent them a thank you note after the party, which apparently was not what they expected from someone my age.
While I lived on the east side I got breakfast with them on weekends with some regularity, which led to them being invited to my original birthday parties in Coventry (they sent a thank you note once in return). By the time I was on the west side and not easily in breakfast range, Supper Club had started so I still saw them quite regularly. And there was always Boxing Day. The only two times that I was out of town for Boxing Day I called in, including once from a payphone in Melbourne, Australia.
For all of those parties, my best conversation with Alex might have been at a New Year's Eve 2003-2004 party at Mandy and Don's old house. We sat in the kitchen (all the best conversations at parties are in the kitchen) and had rather a lot of alcohol and talked about music for hours. Alex told me about all the concerts he'd seen over the years (he grew up in London in the 60s, and saw (or at least claimed to have seen) the Rolling Stones before they got signed as well as many, many other bands. He was a great storyteller, and I never honestly was able to tell if he was telling the truth, utterly full of it or somewhere in between. When you're having that much fun, who cares? We'd later go to a few concerts together, mostly the Cleveland Orchestra but once memorably Neil Innes, who Alex had seen with The Bonzos many times in London. He and Neil had a long chat after the show, as I recall.
I think I still have a few emails saved from him, including a hilariously detailed one about what to look for in a contractor. Somewhere I think I still have saved a data dump for when I went to London, that included something along the line of "if you get into any trouble, feel free to call my mother, she's far more helpful than most functionaries." He and Cynthia also pointed us to Neal's Yard Dairy, which was a high point of the trip.
His obituary comes from the Plain Dealer.
ALEXANDER MATHIESON, of Lyndhurst, passed away Saturday, January 9, 2016 at the age of 68. Beloved husband of Cynthia, father of Genevieve (Jim) and Toby (Maureen) and grandfather of Luke and Lily. Born in London England, and resident of Hong Kong prior to Cleveland; a skilled craftsman, seasoned traveler, and inveterate raconteur. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Hospice of the Western Reserve. A memorial service and celebration of his life for all friends and family will be held in June, with ash scattering ceremonies around the globe this year.
Man, I miss him.
Alex and his wife Cynthia were the only parents of any of my friends to become my friends ( Mark was family) themselves, a distinction in which I was probably not unique among Genevieve's friends. I first met them at a wedding in Chicago on November 11, 2000. I was completely and totally hammered and happened to sit next to them on the bus back to the hotel. Apparently I somehow made a good impression, because when gieves formally introduced them to me the next morning at brunch they were quite amused and welcoming. It's still one of Cynthia's more amusing stories. I then ended up at their house for Boxing Day, probably starting in 2002 and certainly in 2003. I recall I sent them a thank you note after the party, which apparently was not what they expected from someone my age.
While I lived on the east side I got breakfast with them on weekends with some regularity, which led to them being invited to my original birthday parties in Coventry (they sent a thank you note once in return). By the time I was on the west side and not easily in breakfast range, Supper Club had started so I still saw them quite regularly. And there was always Boxing Day. The only two times that I was out of town for Boxing Day I called in, including once from a payphone in Melbourne, Australia.
For all of those parties, my best conversation with Alex might have been at a New Year's Eve 2003-2004 party at Mandy and Don's old house. We sat in the kitchen (all the best conversations at parties are in the kitchen) and had rather a lot of alcohol and talked about music for hours. Alex told me about all the concerts he'd seen over the years (he grew up in London in the 60s, and saw (or at least claimed to have seen) the Rolling Stones before they got signed as well as many, many other bands. He was a great storyteller, and I never honestly was able to tell if he was telling the truth, utterly full of it or somewhere in between. When you're having that much fun, who cares? We'd later go to a few concerts together, mostly the Cleveland Orchestra but once memorably Neil Innes, who Alex had seen with The Bonzos many times in London. He and Neil had a long chat after the show, as I recall.
I think I still have a few emails saved from him, including a hilariously detailed one about what to look for in a contractor. Somewhere I think I still have saved a data dump for when I went to London, that included something along the line of "if you get into any trouble, feel free to call my mother, she's far more helpful than most functionaries." He and Cynthia also pointed us to Neal's Yard Dairy, which was a high point of the trip.
His obituary comes from the Plain Dealer.
ALEXANDER MATHIESON, of Lyndhurst, passed away Saturday, January 9, 2016 at the age of 68. Beloved husband of Cynthia, father of Genevieve (Jim) and Toby (Maureen) and grandfather of Luke and Lily. Born in London England, and resident of Hong Kong prior to Cleveland; a skilled craftsman, seasoned traveler, and inveterate raconteur. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Hospice of the Western Reserve. A memorial service and celebration of his life for all friends and family will be held in June, with ash scattering ceremonies around the globe this year.
Man, I miss him.