Hassan is late returning from the Mosque tonight, but when he finally walks through the open doorway to my room, he is carrying a large, ornate Qur’an. I put away my Neal Stephenson.

“She can’t vacuum, she can’t cook[,] but she can do almost anything else if you know what I mean,” the New Jersey-based artificial intelligence engineer said. “She’s a companion.”

Casey Johnson is the first real face I’ve had to the family, and I’ve seen much more than her face now that news agencies are airing her engagement video to Tila Tequila (politely referred to as “Ms. Tequila”) in which the two prance around in their underwear, intoxicated on a little more than love.