Alexa, I want the tide high-efficiency unscented cold-water large box of detergent please.

I've never had the slightest problem with my dash button WRT counterfeit and SKU foolishness... push button next to empty kitchen trash bag box, receive kitchen trash bags tomorrow, it really is that simple.

I couldn't be part of the electronic, energy, packaging and transport waste that this approach contributes to.

If I run out of trash bags, I buy more next time I'm at the supermarket. If I'm likely to forget to do that, I'll leave the empty box somewhere visible until I do remember, or if it's urgent write a note on a scrap of paper.

"Alexa, next time I'm at the supermarket, remind me I need trash bags" would be far more reasonable.

I still think that the Windows Live Tile approach to notifications that don't need immediate attention is still one of the best, and wish Android and iOS would both offer something much more similar to that as a good option to help clean up the notification world.

I'd be afraid of getting a counterfeit, and possibly dangerous or poisonous, product blindly ordering from Amazon third-party sellers.

But given how hard it is to even find just standardized products on Amazon at a reasonable price and with Prime shipping from a reliable seller, etc, etc, when I can _see_ what's going on, I personally would never trust Alexa to do the selection for me.

Don't get me started...

For some reason, most normal people can't express their preferences - and they absolutely have them, which they'll be very happy to shout at you about when you come back with the wrong product. I've learned the hard way that when someone asks me to buy e.g. milk, I need to ask about brand, size, fat percentage, UHT or no, and which other brands/sizes/percentages are acceptable if the preferred one is not available - and I need to ask those questions before leaving.

Or maybe it's just me who wasn't born with mind-reading capability...

(And no, buying the "usual one" is not a good strategy, because there are good chances that they need a different one just this once, and yes, I was supposed to guess that myself.)

"What do you mean, creme fraiche isn't double cream? It's close isn't it? It's dairy, right?"

b) It was mostly a joke - but I do happen to be exceptionally bad at this. I get frustrated about half an hour in and panic. I do other chores instead.

I don’t understand why so many men treat their wives like some sort of untamed beast, to be trained and placated and feared in equal measure. She’s a person, treat her like one.

That sounds like the argument Internet bears made about online shopping during its early days.