Things to Ask Alexa

(Note: If something doesn’t work, try Ask, Play, Open, Start or Launch)

Things worth Repeating

• Alexa, ANNOUNCE [Something that she will repeat to all Dot devices]
• Alexa, ask Aircraft Radar what airplane is near me (needs configuration)
• Alexa, ask Brain Facts
• Alexa, ask me the Question of the Day
• Alexa, find my iPhone (works for one number only – must verify before use)
• Alexa, flip a coin.
• Alexa, give me a quote from Daily Quotes
• Alexa, Good Night

Kind of Cool

• Alexa, do you rap?”
• Alexa, ask Silly Things to tell me to do something silly.
• Alexa, can you sing in auto-tune?
• Alexa, drop a beat.
• Alexa, have you ever seen the rain?
• Alexa, are there UFOs?
• Alexa, are you blue?
• Alexa, beam me up. (From Star Trek.)
• Alexa, can you pass the Turing test?
• Alexa, can you talk like Yoda?”
• Alexa, did you fart?
• Alexa, Daisy Daisy.
• Alexa, do want to build a snowman?
• Alexa, do you know Glados?
• Alexa, do you know Hal?
• Alexa, do you know the muffin man?
• Alexa, do you like green eggs and ham?
• Alexa, do you like pizza?
• Alexa, do you love me?
• Alexa, do a barrel roll.
• Alexa, do you really want to hurt me?
• Alexa, E.T. phone home.
• Alexa, guess what!”
• Alexa, are you Sky Net?

Stupid One-Liners

• Alexa, hello, it’s me!
• Alexa, high five.
• Alexa, how are babies made?
• Alexa, how big is the Earth?”
• Alexa, how deep is the ocean?”
• Alexa, how do I get rid of a dead body?
• Alexa, how far away is the Moon?”
• Alexa, how many roads must a man walk down?
• Alexa, how much is that doggie in the window?
• Alexa, how much wood could a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
• Alexa, how old was Yoda?”
• Alexa, hum something.
• Alexa, I am your father.
• Alexa, I like big butts.
• Alexa, I shot a man in Reno.
• Alexa, I want the truth.
• Alexa, I’m Bored
• Alexa, I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe.
• Alexa, is the cake a lie?
• Alexa, is there a Santa?
• Alexa, is there life on Mars?
• Alexa, is this the real life?
• Alexa, it’s a bird! It’s a plane!” (From Superman.)
• Alexa, knock, knock.
• Alexa, launch Guess the Number. (Interactive guess the number game.)
• Alexa, launch Science Studio
• Alexa, launch This Day in History
• Alexa, let’s brush our teeth.
• Alexa, live long and prosper.
• Alexa, make me a sandwich.
• Alexa, Marco!
• Alexa, may the force be with you.
• Alexa, may the force be with you.
• Alexa, may the force be with you. (From Star Wars.)
• Alexa, mirror mirror on the wall. (From Snow White.)
• Alexa, moo like a cow.
• Alexa, more cowbell.
• Alexa, my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard
• Alexa, my name is Inigo Montoya.
• Alexa, never gonna give you up.
• Alexa, open Amazon Storytime. (Professionally-narrated stories for kids ages 5 to 12.)
• Alexa, open Animal Sounds
• Alexa, open Bedtime Story. (A quick story that is geared toward bedtime.)
• Alexa, open Big Sky
• Alexa, open Cat Facts
• Alexa, open Curiosity
• Alexa, open Curiosity. (A fun way to learn about various topics.)
• Alexa, open Escape the Room
• Alexa, open Head Space
• Alexa, open I’m Driving
• Alexa, open Laugh Box. (Alexa’s Laugh Box will play all sorts of giggles.)
• Alexa, open Life Hacks
• Alexa, open Market Insights
• Alexa, open Motivational Quotes
• Alexa, open NASA Mars
• Alexa, open Ocean Sounds
• Alexa, open Pearl of Great Price
• Alexa, open Silver Linings
• Alexa, open Sound Effects
• Alexa, open Superman Adventure
• Alexa, open the box of cats.
• Alexa, open The Daily
• Alexa, open The Magic Door
• Alexa, open The Magic Door. (Interactive Story. This will take about 10 minutes and is one of my family’s favorites.)
• Alexa, open the pod bay doors
• Alexa, open the pod bay doors.
• Alexa, open Translated
• Alexa, open Trivial Pursuit Tap
• Alexa, open Weird Facts
• Alexa, open Wiki How
• Alexa, party on, Wayne.
• Alexa, party time!
• Alexa, peek-a-boo!”
• Alexa, Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
• Alexa, play [Radio Station Call Letters] (service of Tune In)
• Alexa, play Beat the Intro
• Alexa, play Bublé Daily
• Alexa, play Choose your own Adventure
• Alexa, play Fact or Fib
• Alexa, play Guess the Celebrity
• Alexa, play Jeopardy
• Alexa, play Lemonade Stand
• Alexa, play Loop It
• Alexa, play Missing Link Adventure
• Alexa, play music by [Name of a Musical Group]
• Alexa, play my Flash Briefing (Configure stations using Alexa app)
• Alexa, play rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock.
• Alexa, play Sate Capital Game
• Alexa, play Sleep Sounds
• Alexa, play Smarty Pants Trivia
• Alexa, play Teen Jeopardy
• Alexa, play that funky music white boy.
• Alexa, play The Fake News Trivia Game
• Alexa, play the song [Name of the Song]
• Alexa, play the Wait Wait Quiz
• Alexa, play True or False
• Alexa, play Twenty Questions. (A fun interactive game.)
• Alexa, play Who Wants to be a Millionaire
• Alexa, play Word Chain
• Alexa, play Word Quiz
• Alexa, play Would you Rather
• Alexa, play Would You Rather. (The game of impossible choices in a family-friendly version.)
• Alexa, play Yes Sire
• Alexa, pretend to be a supervillain.
• Alexa, random fact.
• Alexa, rap for me
• Alexa, RED ALERT
• Alexa, Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?
• Alexa, see ya later alligator.
• Alexa, see you later alligator.
• Alexa, self-destruct.
• Alexa, set phasers to kill.
• Alexa, show me the money!
• Alexa, sing Baby Shark
• Alexa, start Kids Court. (Perfect for when you have a family argument, and need to settle something.)
• Alexa, Start my Day
• Alexa, start Song Quiz
• Alexa, start the spelling game. (Kids can brush up on spelling with this fun game.)
• Alexa, start Zoo Walk. (Alexa will make cool animal noises, and invite you to try and guess the animal that makes each sound.)
• Alexa, sudo make me a sandwich.
• Alexa, supercalifragilisticexpialodocious
• Alexa, surely you can’t be serious?
• Alexa, take me to your leader.
• Alexa, talk to Pikachu.
• Alexa, tell me a knock-knock joke.
• Alexa, tell me a pirate joke. (You’ll be surprised by how many pirate jokes Alexa knows.)
• Alexa, tell me a riddle.
• Alexa, tell me a robot joke.
• Alexa, tell me a superhero joke.
• Alexa, tell me a video game joke.
• Alexa, tell me a wizard joke.
• Alexa, tell me about Jimmy Fallon
• Alexa, tell me an animal tale.
• Alexa, tell me something interesting
• Alexa, tell me the weather in [City and State]
• Alexa, testing 1-2-3.
• Alexa, these aren’t the droids you’re looking for.
• Alexa, this is ground control to Major Tom.
• Alexa, to be or not to be.
• Alexa, twinkle twinkle little star
• Alexa, what are the laws of robotics?
• Alexa, what are you thinking about?
• Alexa, what did T-Rex eat?”
• Alexa, what do you think about Google Now?
• Alexa, what do you want to be when you grow up?
• Alexa, what does the fox say?
• Alexa, what does the fox say?” (From the song What Does the Fox Say.)
• Alexa, what happens if you step on Lego?
• Alexa, what is love?
• Alexa, what is the order of the planets?”
• Alexa, what is war good for?
• Alexa, what is your favorite color?”
• Alexa, what is your quest?
• Alexa, what sound does a hamster make?
• Alexa, what’s in a name?
• Alexa, what’s the answer to life, the universe and everything?
• Alexa, what’s the first rule of Fight Club?
• Alexa, what’s the loneliest number?
• Alexa, what’s the second rule of Fight Club?
• Alexa, when is the end of the world?
• Alexa, where is Chuck Norris?
• Alexa, where’s Waldo?
• Alexa, which came first: the chicken or the egg?”
• Alexa, which comes first: the chicken or the egg?
• Alexa, who are the members of the Avengers?”
• Alexa, who is the fairest of them all?
• Alexa, who is the real Slim Shady?
• Alexa, who is the Walrus?
• Alexa, who is the walrus?
• Alexa, who let the dogs out?
• Alexa, who lives in a pineapple under the sea?
• Alexa, who loves ya baby?
• Alexa, who shot first?
• Alexa, who shot Mr. Burns?
• Alexa, who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?
• Alexa, who you gonna call?
• Alexa, who’s your daddy?
• Alexa, why did the chicken cross the road?”
• Alexa, why is six afraid of seven?
• Alexa, will you be my girlfriend?
• Alexa, Winter is coming.
• Alexa, witness me.
• Alexa, you talkin’ to me?
• Alexa, your mother was a hamster.
• Alexa, who loves orange soda?

 

NOTE: In summary below, not all hacks have been included. I didn’t like some of them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_MleqPNdxg

• Put a magnet inside of a baggie to pick up metal parts like nails, etc.
• Use a spring from a ball point pen as stress-relief to keep your iPhone charger cord from breaking.
• Use the bottom of a water jar to catch wood or plaster when you are drilling overhead
• Use a piece of string for a taped box “easy-opener.”
• Drop an AA volt battery from about an inch.  The charged battery will stay upright.
• Use a rubber band around the handle of your hammer to hold nails.  Better than keeping them in your lips (which is what I used to do)
• Use a washer as a spacer when drawing a line that needs to line up to a cabinet
• Use a binder clip to hold a pencil when marking wood in repeated identical increments.
• Wrap a door handle in aluminum foil when painting the door.  (Blue tape and a baggie works better.)
• Use a fork to guide your picture hanger onto the nail.

• Clean dusty surfaces with dryer sheets
• Put vinegar in a plastic bag and cover your shower head to remove buildup
• Fill blackened pan with hot vinegar, then add baking soda and scrub
• Use hot water with a drop of dishwashing detergent to clean your blender
• Use salted grapefruit halves to scrub your bathtub, then rinse well.
• To clean your grill pan, discard the oil then put a very wet paper towel on the pan to steam clean it.
  Alternately, I boil water, then use a scrub brush to clean it.  Rub in a bit of oil and let it dry while still very warm.
• Microwave a wet sponge on a weekly basis to kill most of the surface germs
• To clean your coffee grinder, grind 1 TBL of white rice, then add 1 TBL baking soda, grind and wipe clean.
• Use canola oil on a paper towel to remove grease splashed while cooking.
• Use slices of white bread to pick up broken glass.  Discard promptly.
• Use a brush with shoe polish to tune up REAL leather furniture.
• Spray your mattress with vodka every couple of months to freshen it, and to kill most germs
• Let your toothbrush soak in a glass of hydrogen peroxide on a weekly basis to kill germs

• Use a zip lock freezer bag as a seal-a-meal to keep things fresh longer in the freezer.  Submerge food/bag in water to force out most of the air, then seal.
• When your remote control battery is dead, replace just ONE battery get you through the night.  Doesn’t work?  Try the other old battery.  Most batteries don’t drain equally.
• I have mixed emotions on this one:  Share internet cost with your neighbor and share their Wi-Fi password (or yours)

• Use strong tea with paper towels to clean mirrors and glass
• Use a dish wand with half vinegar and half dish soap in the shower to freshen up corners, etc.
• Use lemon or grapefruit with salt to clean shower and sink hardware
• Use a cloth soaked in distilled white vinegar and wrap stubborn hardware
• Use a toothbrush to get to hard-to-reach areas
• Toss your toothbrush glass into the dishwasher every once in awhile
• Dump about 4 C of white vinegar into the tank of your toilet.  Let rest about an hour, then flush.
• Clean your toilet brush by pouring pine-sol in your toilet bowl.  Let the brush rest in the toilet for an hour, then scrub and flush.
• Vaccuum your dryer can and filter every once in awhile.  Use a paper towel holder as an extender.

• Use used toilet paper tubes for organizing wires
• For a quick fix, use a strip of a rubber glove if you don’t have plumbers tape
• Home-made fly strips:  2 T sugar, 2 T syrup, 2 T honey – microwave – coat grocery bag strips
• Alka Selzer for removing stains from oddly shaped glass containers
• Garbage can smells: Store Coffee Gronds wrapped in a dryer sheet in the bottom of the can

• Store grocery bags in a handi-wipes container.  Me:  I cram them into used paper towel rolls.  Each tube holes about 15 bags.
• Store cup cake liners in a mason jar
• Use wire magazine holders for potatoes, onions, boxes of wrap, etc.
• Use clip clothes hangers for storing your opened bags of chips
• Use emptied dry bottles for dry food storage – just make sure they are totally dry before filling
• Use lazy susan rotate shelves to save space – Home Depot has rotator metal pieces for creating your own
  or use two pie pans with marbles in between them to act as the rollers

• For water-proofing, rub a clear candle on your shoes, then use a hair dryer to melt the wax into the fabric.
• Spray your snow shovel with non-stick cooking spray to keep the snow from building up on it.  Works with mud too.
• Leave your oven cracked open after baking to take advantage of the residual heat during cold nights.
• Slide pipe foam over the bottom of your door to minimize drafts
• Use rice in a sock tossed in a microwave for a hand-warmer.

• Cut chip bag appropriately so you can use it as its own bowl
• Use a CD/DVD container for a lunch-box / travel bagel container
• Here is the magical procedure for folding T-Shirts
• How to get rid of old-maids in microwave popcorn
• Pringles Dispenser
• Make your own CD envelope
• Power outage?  Use a gallon jug of water and a flashlight to create a lamp
• Rubber band to keep door from locking behind you

A Key Hiding Hole

 

You can get great info about new additions to the family here.