Let me introduce you to Starbucks. He's my (roughly) 3-year old African Grey. I've grown up with birds as pets, and didn't realize that many people find this odd. I think the assumption is that a bird has no personality and doesn't really interact at all. While maybe this is true of some birds, Starbucks is certainly full of personality.

He says,"Morning!" when I uncover his cage each morning and, "Hello?!" when a phone rings. He shouts, "Come in!" when there's a knock on the door and, "Go back!" when he starts to walk down the leg of his own cage.

He laughs, coughs, and sneezes.

He mimics cell phone noises, can do the Good, Bad, and the Ugly whistle, and loves doing a Cat Call.

His vocabulary also includes:

Hello
Bu-bye
OK
Starbucks
Kisses (followed by kiss noises)
Hello Beautiful
Hey Babes!
Joyce (my wonderful friend and house-help)
Scoop (when he wants me to rub under his beak)
Come
Wanna Come?
Come on! (in a sassy, annoyed tone)
Hey buddy!
Snack
That's a good boy!
Poophead (I like teaching him to talk trash)

And my all-time favorite:

Chalupa! (when he does his business!)