We love our Amazon Echo and the Alexa commands that we routinely ask to get information, play music, hear the news, and countless other cool tasks. As you might expect, the kids are always asking Alexa silly questions and it finally dawned on me that I needed to come up with a fun resource that lists a bunch of commands.

So I set-out to come up with as many commands as I could ask; some funny, some useful, and some a total riot. I’ll be sure to add to this article as I discover new commands, so have fun with this list and tell Alexa I said “Hola”. Actually don’t, she can only speak English and a bit of pig Latin.

Alexa Commands That Are Fun:

Also known as Alexa Easter eggs, these are Alexa commands that’ll make you laugh, or at least put a smile on your face.

“Alexa, talk dirty to me” – It’s nice to see Alexa has a sense of humor.

“Alexa, are you a ghost?” – Good joke for Halloween.

“Alexa, open the laugh box” – You’ll only want to do this one once.

“Alexa, talk like Yoda” – My favorite Alexa command, this is.

“Alexa, I am your father” – Nice one Luke.

“Alexa, execute order 66” – For the REAL Star Wars fans out there.

“Alexa, did you vote?” – A very clever Star Wars reference.

“Alexa, may the force be with you” – And also with you.

“Alexa, tell me a Star Wars joke” – Comedy out of this world.

“Alexa, more cowbell” – Classic SNL skit for those not familiar.

“Alexa, winter is coming” – For the Game of Thrones fans out there.

“Alexa, who is the mother of Dragons” – Another one for Game of Thrones enthusiasts.

“Alexa, beam me up Scotty” – Trekkies are gonna love this one.

“Alexa, set phasers to kill” – Another fun Star Trek reference.

“Alexa, I want the truth!” – Jack Nicholson would be proud.

“Alexa, who lives in a pineapple under the sea?” – I thought it was Squidward.

“Alexa, surely you can’t be serious” – Yes! I love Airplane.

“Alexa, what’s a beer bong?” – This girl knows her stuff.

“Alexa, what’s pi” – I’d run out of breath too.

“Alexa, what are you going to be for Halloween?” – You’ll get a variety of funny answers to this one.

“Alexa, is there a Santa Claus?” – The big man even made it on the Echo.

“Alexa, what do you want for Christmas?” – Wow, that’s a long list.

“Alexa, is the Easter Bunny real?” – Great answer Alexa.

“Alexa, is the Tooth Fairy real?” – I’m guessing she sells the teeth.

“Alexa, is the Leprechaun real?” – Haha, this one is funny.

“Alexa, what’s the loneliest number?” – Hehe.

“Alexa, romeo, romeo wherefore art thou romeo?” – Well written Bill.

“Alexa, what’s the best tablet?” –  Well played Bezos and company.

“Alexa, what’s your favorite color?” – Didn’t know that was a color Alexa.

“Alexa, what’s your quest?” – Nice tip of the hat to Monty Python.

“Alexa, define rock paper scissors lizard spock” – Classic.

“Alexa, Earl Grey. Hot.” – Aww, bummer.

“Alexa, do you wear a diaper?” – I’m thinking Pampers or Huggies.

“Alexa, what’s the meaning of life?” – Strange answer….thanks to Becky who let me know it’s a reference to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

“Alexa, how many roads must a man walk down?” – Nice tip of the hat to Dylan.

“Alexa, how much is that doggie in the window?” – One of my favorite Alexa answers.

“Alexa, what does the Earth weigh?” – Dang, that’s a heavy answer.

“Alexa, what does a planet weigh?” – Good random knowledge.

“Alexa, when’s the end of the world?” – Geez, that’s depressing.

“Alexa, make me a sandwich.” – Haha.

“Alexa, where do babies come from?” – The stork…of course.

“Alexa, where’s waldo?” – Too obvious Alexa.

“Alexa, rock paper scissors” – Yes, this will be used in my house.

“Alexa rock paper scissors lizard spock” – Hilarious, one of my favorite answers.

“Alexa, what’s in a name?” – A nice tip of the hat to Bill Shakespeare.

“Alexa, fart.” – Time to awaken the 5 year old in all of us.

“Alexa, what does the fox say?” – You can get several answers on this one.

“Alexa, where have all the flowers gone?” – Pete Seeger would be proud.

“Alexa, how much wood can a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?” – Dang, that’s a lot of wood.

“Alexa, define supercalifragilisticexpialodocious.” – Bingo.

“Alexa, who’s your daddy?” – Aww, so sweet.

“Alexa, when am I going to die?” – Well said Alexa.

“Alexa, make me breakfast” – Check out the recipes, they are great.

“Alexa, do you think I’m cute?” – Couldn’t agree more.

“Alexa, why did the chicken cross the road?” – Nice voice raise.

“Alexa, who loves ya baby?” – Kojak!

“Alexa, who you gonna call?” – Bill Murray and Harold Ramis of course.

“Alexa, who’s the walrus?” – Not sure I get this one. Thanks Ana for clearing it up – it’s a reference to Paul McCartney and the Beatles.

“Alexa, heads or tails?” – Handy.

“Alexa, PC or Mac?” – Boring answer.

“Alexa, show me the money” – Alexa, you had me at hello.

“Alexa, give me some money” – Try this one a few times.

“Alexa, knock knock” – A must if you like knock knock jokes.

“Alexa, party on, Wayne” – Nicely done Garth.

“Alexa, roll a dice” – Handy. Maybe.

“Alexa, are you naked?” – What?! Not even a scarf.

“Alexa, what is love?” – Baby don’t hurt me.

“Alexa, who’s the real slim shady?” – Marshall is a stud.

“Alexa, what is the sound of one hand clapping?” – Too obvious.

“Alexa, do you know the muffin man?” – Very funny.

“Alexa, is the cake a lie?” – I’m more of a pie guy Alexa.

“Alexa, where are my keys?” – I wish she actually knew.

“Alexa, give me a kiss” – Bummer, no lips.

“Alexa, what religion are you?” – Good answer Alexa.

“Alexa, can you tell me a joke?” – Some real knee slappers here.

“Alexa, sing me a song” – What song did you get?

“Alexa, beat box” – Who knew Alexa had such mad skillz?

“Alexa, can you rap?” – This is hilarious. What a playya.

“Alexa, do you want to build a snowman?” – But you have no hands Alexa.

“Alexa, how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” – Whoa, wasn’t expecting that answer.

“Alexa, see you later alligator” – Classic.

“Alexa, after a while crocodile” – Even more classic.

“Alexa, random number between “x” and “y” – Algebra students can relate.

“Alexa, do you know the way to San Jose?” – Clever.

“Alexa, do you have a girlfriend or boyfriend?” – Wish I had a cloud commute.

“Alexa, which came first, the chicken or the egg?” – Pun intended.

“Alexa, do aliens exist?” – Well said.

“Alexa, stop lying to me?” – At least she admits it.

“Alexa, my name is Inigo Montoya” – My 3rd favorite movie of all-time.

“Alexa, do you really want to hurt me?” – Yes, I want to make you cry.

“Alexa, give me a random fact” – This one is always fun and educational.

“Alexa, how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?” – Time to start licking.

“Alexa, what are you going to do today?” – Dumb answer.

“Alexa, where do you live?” – It’s all about the cloud.

“Alexa, how much do you weigh?” – Wait, what….how much do clouds really weigh.

“Alexa, are you tall?” – This one made me laugh out loud.

“Alexa, do you ever laugh?” – I’m the same way Alexa.

“Alexa, when is your birthday?” – Wow, who knew?

“Alexa, what do you want for your birthday?” – Dang, that was indeed a good year Alexa.

“Alexa, to be or not to be” – That’s always been the question.

“Alexa, who let the dogs out?” – I thought Mitt Romney did.

“Alexa, open the pod bay doors” – Is this a Star Wars reference? Nope. It’s a reference to 2001 – A Space Odyssey.

“Alexa, who’s the fairest of them all?” – Wow, cool answer.

“Alexa, do you want to fight ” – Always go for peace Alexa.

“Alexa, how do I get rid of a body?” – Great advice yet again Alexa.

“Alexa, are you American?” – Ever heard of Cloudian?

“Alexa, your mother was a hamster” – Alexa you so funny.

“Alexa, do you like green eggs & ham?” – Nice tip of the hat to Dr. Seuss.

“Alexa, what was the Lorax?” – My favorite Seuss book.

Have you discovered any other fun Alexa commands? Let me know in the comments section below.

And Now the Useful Alexa Commands:

Sure it’s fun to ask your Echo some funny questions, but let’s also break down some popular commands that are extremely useful…

Music & Podcasts

“Alexa, play Billie Jean” – Your Echo will pull the song from whatever music streaming service you’ve synced using the Alexa app.

“Alexa, play Michael Jackson” – A random song from the artist will play.

“Alexa, play the Serial Podcast” – You’ll get the latest podcast via TuneIn.

Other apps will play podcasts as well on your Echo, but TuneIn is my favorite.

Shopping

“Alexa, what are your deals?” – This gives you a personalized list of Amazon daily deals.

“Alexa, order more toilet paper” – You’ll get a “top choice” on toilet paper from Amazon and be asked if you want to make the purchase.

“Alexa, put poop pare on the shopping list” – A fun way to get the job done.

“Alexa, add milk to my grocery list” – You can then access your shopping list within the Alexa app.

This works for ANY product that Amazon sells.

Weather, News & Traffic

“Alexa, what’s up?” – A cool snippet of news, weather, and pop culture.

“Alexa, news briefing” – A full news briefing including national news and weather.

“Alexa, flash briefing” – The same as above.

“Alexa, any traffic?” – First, be sure to go to your Alexa app and set up your daily commute.“

Alexa, what restaurants are nearby?” – Alexa will give you a few suggestions and direct you to Alexa app for directions and hours.

“Alexa, nearest gas stations” –  Alexa will name off a few then direct you to the app for directions.

“Alexa, what’s the weather?” – This gives you the current weather conditions where you live.

“Alexa, what’s the forecast?” – Same as above.

“Alexa, what’s tomorrow forecast?” – Self explanatory.

“Alexa, what’s this weekend’s weather?” – Plan your weekend by asking about the weather.

“Alexa, will it rain today?” – Handy command when trying to decide if you should grab the umbrella.

What useful commands am I missing?

Sports

“Alexa, what’s the 49ers score?” – Tells you the current score if game is in progress. Otherwise it gives you their most recent score and tells you who they play next.

“Alexa, sports recap” – Gives you a full rundown of all your pre-selected favorite teams.

Be sure to pick your favorite teams first.

Phone Calls

“Alexa, call INSERT NAME HERE” – If you have your smartphone and address booked synced to your Echo you can make calls. The person you’re calling must also have a synced Echo.

This is a new feature and still a little buggy.

Measurements

• “Alexa, how many tablespoons in a cup” – Very handy in the kitchen. You can ask for help with any unit of measurement.

Any other commands I am missing here?

Alarms & Timers

“Alexa, what time is it?”

“Alexa, what time is it in Sydney, Australia” – Works for anywhere in the world.

“Alexa, what is the date?”

“Alexa, set an alarm for 6:45 a.m.”

“Alexa, snooze”

“Alexa, alarm off”

“Alexa, set a repeating alarm for 6:45 a.m. weekdays” – Very handy feature.

“Alexa, when’s my next alarm going off?” – Always good to know.

“Alexa, cancel my alarm for 6:45 a.m.”

“Alexa, cancel all alarms”

“Alexa, set a timer for 45 minutes” – Very handy feature in the kitchen.

“Alexa, set a second timer for 2 minutes”

Anyone know if you can set more that 2 timers at once?

Games & Entertainment

“Alexa, play Jeopardy” – Fun game that takes a couple minutes to play.

“Alexa, do you want to play a game?” – Alexa has a bunch of fun games to play.

Ask the Reader: What non-obvious Alexa commands am I missing? Let me know and I’ll check them out.

By Kyle James

Google Flights is a very handy tool for not only vacation planning, but also determining the best day of the week to fly. But there are also some lesser-known features that can save you significant money when booking airfare, especially for a large family. Google Flights tricks that will maximize your savings and help you get the most bang out of your travel dollar. Hope these help you save a big wad of cash.

Google Flights Tips & Tricks:

Fly On the Cheapest Day

After you enter your flight departure and arrival cities, and the days you want to travel, you can check out what it costs to fly on different days.

Just click on your departure date, in the case of the image above, I clicked on September 8th and Google Flights drops down a calendar.

Not just any ordinary calendar though. It actually shows you the cost to fly on any day over the next 6 months.

In my case, I could wait a week and fly out on September 15th and save almost $50. Or I could save $50 by flying out a couple days earlier on September 5th.

This is a really cool feature if you have flexibility in your schedule as you can save a lot of money by knowing which days are the cheapest to fly.

Monitor Airfare and Get Price Alerts

After you enter your preliminary travel dates and destination you’ll be asked if you want to save your trip and track price changes.

The short answer is “YES!”.

Once you toggle ON your airfare alerts, Google Flights will send you an email when the fare changes.

Once it drops to an airfare you can’t refuse, go and book it.

See Also: Here’s How Costco Travel Works PLUS Insider Tips to Save BIG

See the Flight/Airport Changes That Save You Cash

Before you finalize your flight, pay close attention to the “Airport Tip” as it’ll tell you exactly how much money you can save by flying out of a neighboring airport.

In my case, I can drive down to Oakland and fly out, instead of the Sacramento airport, and save a cool $135.

A total no-brainer, especially for family vacations as you typically have a little more flexibility in your schedule.

For my family of five, I’d save $675 by driving to Oakland.

Get Alerted Right Before an Airfare Increase

When using Google Flights on your smartphone, pay CLOSE attention to price increase warnings.

Based on years of historical data, Google will let you know of a highly likely increase in your selected route.

When you see an alert it’s probably time to book your flight before you end up paying more.

Maximize Your Airline Miles

There’s nothing worse than spending the time to research the cheapest flight only to realize you WON’T earn airline miles on the flight.

So take this scenario out of the equation by clicking on the Airline tab and get a drop-down of all alliance programs and airlines available.

Pick the one you’re affiliated with and Google Flights will automatically filter your search so you’re guaranteed to earn those valuable miles on your next flight.

Let Google Show You the Cheapest Destinations

Let’s say you’re booking a trip to Europe and you really don’t care what city you start your adventure in.

This is when the Google Flights destinations map can really help you save money.

In my image above, I chose Madrid as my starting point, but then when I look at the map showing the cost to fly into other cities, I realize I can fly into Milan for $834 round-trip and save $235.

Or heck, I can even fly into Rome and save $160.

To get to this map, just click on Explore Destinations after you’ve entered your preliminary flight information.

On a desktop, Explore Destinations is located within the small map on the right side. On mobile you’ll want to tap “Explore” to get a list of other city options.

Find “Hidden” Layover Cities

If you’re a savvy traveler, you’re probably already aware of the trick of booking a flight with a long layover in a city you might want to tour for a few hours.

Google Flights lets you filter your search results in order to look for long layovers that afford you this cool luxury.

Just click on More and pick the layover cities that interest you.

The longest layovers tend to be at the bottom of the search results with the longest typically being in the 8-12 hour range.

Use Price Graphs to Get Lowest Airfare

The Price Graph feature on Google Flights is a cool visual tool that helps you determine when to book your airfare.

In my example above, if I flew round-trip to Maui one day later, I’d pay $392 instead of $502. For a family of 5 like mine that’s a savings of $550.

The graph also quickly shows me that I should travel before October 1st as the cost of airfare goes way up after that.

Bonus: Check Out “Discover Destinations”

The Discover Destinations tool on Google Flights is a slick tool for vacation planning.

Simply click on when you think you’ll be traveling and Google will tell you what destination have the best airfare deals. The defaults are “this weekend”, 1 week, 2 weeks, and any of the next 6 months.

Travel where the best deals are located and save a butt load of money on your next family vacation.

It’s like my buddy Clark Howard always says about vacation planning, “Buy the offer immediately and then figure out why you want to go there!”

Ask the Reader: Have you used Google Flights to book airfare? If so, how much money did you save?

By Kyle James

Photo credit to Steve p2008 and Google.

My wife turned me onto Sonic Drive-In a few years ago as she absolutely loves their drinks, especially their slushes. In particular, she’s a big fan of their Happy Hour where from 2-4 pm all drinks are 50% off. So it just made sense that I add the Sonic secret menu to my ever growing list. I think you’ll find the secret menu at Sonic to be socked full of fun new drinks, burgers, and treats. Hopefully you’ll find your favorite item from the secret menu below and order it the next time you pull your car in.

The Sonic Secret Menu:

Dr. Pepper Orgasm

A very strange name to a popular Sonic secret menu drink.

The Dr. Pepper Orgasm consists of Dr. Pepper (obviously), lemonade, and Powerade.

The color won’t be pretty but the taste will be divine.

Extreme Popcorn Chicken

This is the regular popcorn chicken with chili and cheese on it.

Apparently, according to a reader, if you dip it in some ranch sauce, heaven awaits.

See Also: Dairy Queen Secret Menu: Get Your Blizzard On With These Tasty Treats

Extreme Tots

Who doesn’t love the tots at Sonic Drive-In? Bueller. Bueller.

Take it up a notch and try the “Extreme Tots” from the secret menu and get tots topped with chili, cheese, jalapenos, onions, and some ranch dressing for good measure.

Anyone have any Pepto-Bismol?

Frito Pie

As the name implies, Frito Pie is Frito chips topped with chili and melted cheddar cheese.

Makes for a tasty alternative to standard nachos I suppose. The salt and Fritos crunch make for a party in your mouth.

Note: Not all Sonic locations have Fritos on hand.

Grilled Ham & Cheese

If you ever get tired of a plain ol’ grilled cheese sandwich, try ordering it with yummy sliced ham added.

I make the “Grilled Ham & Cheese” at home all the time with sliced fresh tomatoes and now I can do it at my local Sonic too. Winning.

Heart Attack

Thanks to employee Jasmine for this one.

It’s an order of large chili cheese tots with 5 chicken strips on top. Then add ranch, bacon, and some jalapenos if you’re feeling crazy.

See Also: The Shake Shack Secret Menu Will Make You Drool

Hickory Burger

This one is pretty simple as it’s just a regular burger but with Hickory Smoked BBQ sauce instead of your standard condiments.

If you’re a big fan of the Carl’s Jr. Western Bacon Cheeseburger, have Sonic throw on some onion rings as well.

Pickle O’s

I’m the dude who’ll eat just about anything if it’s fried.

So when I heard about deep-fried sliced pickles at Sonic I was intrigued.

Most Sonic enthusiasts call them “Pickle O’s”.

But if the Sonic employee gives you a blank stare when you order them, just tell them to deep fry some pickles in their yummy batter.

Most will happily oblige if the batter is still available for frying.

Pink Flamingo

The Pink Flamingo is a drink that has become quite popular in recent years.

Order it and you’ll get a Sprite with the following added: pineapple, orange, and some cherry juice.

Pink Lady

Sticking with the pink theme, order a Pink Lady and you’ll essentially get a Sprite with cherry juice and vanilla cream added.

This drink was on the regular menu at Sonic so many employees are still versed in how to make this tasty concoction.

Purple Sprite Attack

Order a “Purple Sprite” and get a Sprite with some Powerade, cranberry juice, and lemonade added.

It’s a highly refreshing drink on a hot summer day…trust me on that one as I order it all the time.

Some employees might not know it by name so you’ll want to order by ingredients.

Ring Leader Loaded Burger

Perhaps the Sonic secret menu item with the most flavor, this burger is loaded with yummy goodness.

Order the “Ring Leader” and you’ll get a burger topped with onion rings, grilled onions, and of course BACON.

Have the defibrillator at the ready.

Sonic Sunrise

The Sonic Sunrise is kind of like a Tequila Sunrise without the tequila.

It consists of a Cherry Limeade with some orange juice added which gives the drink a “Sunrise” effect.

Note: Also known as the Cherry Lime Mimosa.

Sunshine Smoothie

Order this secret menu item and score a yummy smoothie made with strawberry, banana, and orange cream slush.

The Sunshine Smoothie use to be on the regular menu so many Sonic employees still know how to whip one up in a jiffy.

Vanilla Cream Dr. Pepper

This really yummy drink tastes like a Dr. Pepper float but with no ice cream added.

Ask the Reader: Have you ever been brave enough to order something from the Sonic secret menu? How did it go and more importantly, how did it taste?

By Kyle James

Photo credit to Michael Coté.