I always get really stumped by people who greet you with "y'alright".

Does that require an answer and similar enquiry?

Why not just say hello or good morning / afternoon like a normal person.

no judo, it is a polite - almost rhetorical - q used as a greeting

it’s not an americanism, it is a britishism. it has been used since the c19th, much like the greeting “hello”

it’s perfectly normal 2 use it and in fact far more normal than “good morning” now

TOOFA pronounces it "aw'ight?"

(y)alright = hi, it is a fully rhetorical ru all right

"good weekend?" as a question is folly, the correct formulation is "I trust you had a good weekend", again fully rhetorical

if they ask it as a question you are entitled to go full gothic humour about it 

(management training these days teaches you not to mention weekends (and certainly not to say "hope you are well") (a) because some people are caring for a dying child or whatever and NO it wasn't good arsehole and (b) it might be intrusive/heteronormative/otherwise exclusionary)

these are the rules!

I have given up answering the how are you thing. Nobody really wants an answer. 

'Thanks for asking, actually I'm feeling pretty chipper'

if it's a work email, then I ignore any "good weekend?" "hope you're well" type enquiries. 

I’m good thanks, how are you?

Goooood, yeah. How are you?

Thanks, yeah, yeah, Good, you?

Yeah

these sort of platitudes are all social grooming, they dont mean anything but are almost universal across cultures/languages and seem to fulfill a sub-conscious need.

NO it wasn't good arsehole.
 

Bit of an overshare for Monday morning.