Bon Voyage

I have a friend who is about to put himself in harm's way by travelling to a Stan to do some dissertation research. Until about fifteen minutes ago, this friend had the qualifier "long-lost" attached to "friend" because we met when he was a special student and I had just started grad work. Then he left me for a fancy pants Research I school in the States to work under the supervision of a genius grant recipient, instead of staying here and suffering at the cheapest research university in North America with me.

He does mention the fact that he'll be putting himself in harm's way shortly in his e-mail so I am sort of flattered because in the process of putting his life in order for the remote possibility of his death in a Stan, he did contact me. But now. Now I feel compelled to dedicate a small part of my brain to worrying about him while he's in the Stan. Mind you, I'm referring to a very small part of my brain but I'm not sure that I can spare it. If my chapter's late, do you think that I can blame it on my newly rediscovered friend? I thought not. That worrying part of my brain just got smaller.

But seriously, if you pray or anything, could you add a line about protecting fool hardy graduate students doing really interesting work that involves visiting the Stans when there's civil unrest? Thank you.