today is our fourth and final edition of ‘ask veena things’!

q: why are you the absolute best and a queen and a boss ass babe and my role model?

a: this is a really great question from sarah and my response is: because i am.

q: what was your favorite childhood tv show, and does it hold up?

a: i have been thinking a lot about the shows i loved when i was younger and how they would hold up if viewed through a 2020 lens. one show i never, ever missed was saved by the bell. i watched anwhere from 1-3 episodes a day and knew every line and glance by heart. i have so many memories of this show from elementary and middle school, and it’s kind of a bummer to admit that i don’t want to rewatch it because i know it won’t hold up. i’ll keep it as a fond memory, but it’s not one i’ll share with my friends’ kids.

q: what is one thing you missed from the states while in india and one thing you miss from india while in the states?

a: setting aside the assumption that i of course missed my family and friends, both of my answers are food-related [which should surprise no one]. when i lived in india i missed dr pepper, taco bell, my mother’s cooking, and all of my favorite memphis restaurants [especially mexican food]. plus football and basketball.

being back in the states, i miss old monk rum and prawn pickle. last year amai and nithya brought me a bottle of old monk, and i sipped it slowly and made it last for about 6 months. when my parents went to india for my cousin’s wedding last year, my aunt sent them back with two bottles of prawn pickle; i’ve finished the first one and am slowly doling out the second. those are the two things i can’t get here, and i miss them. i also miss sheilamma’s mutton biryani the most most.

q: what is one of your favorite family traditions?

a: this one is easy! when i was getting ready to move back to india at the end of 2015 i very carefully planned out my final meals at some of my favorite memphis restaurants. i knew i wanted gus’s to be one of my last stops, and eventually the only slot i had remaining was christmas eve lunch. i decided to roll with it, and we four made our way to gus’s [and when i say gus’s i mean the front ave location because for me it is the only one] for lunch. we did it again when i came home for christmas the following year, and it has been a tradition ever since.

and that’s the end of ‘ask veena things’. i might make it a quarterly thing next year. we shall see.

xx