I referred vaguely to his "obligations" the other day because I didn't know if I should disclose the nature of them.
But his father is ill:
Oh I am. My father is gravely ill but it's looking like he may pull through. I'm just here procrastinating from the other stuff I should be doing. :-)
So it looks better now. When people start procrastinating again, it's a good sign.
But send him a prayer if you've got some to spare.