too much sarcasm = douche?

[ne0phyte]

good point about using descretion and taste. that's definitely something i want to improve on. have i just been making crude jokes then? i'll give you guys the background story.

so I got ppl to come out for happy hour on st patricks. the bar actually ran out of green beer, so one of my female friends ragged on me for picking a bar with no green beer on st pattys. so i told everyone it was all a trick, and that it was actually my herpes coming out party, and they should all need to get tested now. another girl chimed in and said, hey at least it's not aids. that's when i countered by saying the whole you can fight off aids if you're rich like magic johnson, herpes stays with you forever. then girl3 says that's because magic had hiv, not aids. that's when i made my comment, "really, you're going to be super technical here?" with a grin and a light jab on her arm.

these people are all from my master's program in health (which is why we talk a lot about diseases and such). i've known them since school started. the style that I'm going for is more like will smith (friendly, joking, easy to talk to) than james bond (strong silent). it suits my personality better

 

[st_99]

I don't think your comment was sarcastic at all. It would have been sarcastic if you said "ohhhhh, is that what he had? you're smart." in like a monotone dry voice.

 

[magickarl]

You don't have to mentally script everything you say. Go ahead and speak extemporaneously. Just be conscientious of whom is in your presence. Personally, I was raised to behave politely in front of aquaintances, especially of the female variety. For example, my father always told me it was low-class to curse in front of females. So, as you might expect, it's very rare (though it happens) that I curse in front of a respectable lady.

With loose aquaintances, I talk in about the same fashion that I type. Imagine Morgan Freeman reading these words exactly as they've been typed. Thats how I talk. Only, I'm white.

With close friends in privacy, it's a bit different. My mannerisms become more relaxed, and I usually talk in a way that would make a nun sweat. Imagine Joe Pesci in GoodFellas. I talk about like that. Only, with a much lighter accent.

Will Smith has some definite style. He has a lot of class too. Dialogue like the one you described sounds more like a bad saturday night live skit. Not too offensive for TV, but definitely low brow. It conjures a mental image of the guy about to fall off the bar stool. Don't be that guy.

Watch a few episodes of House, MD and watch how Greg House behaves. Bear in mind you'll want to tone the dialogue down several notches. You are observing his style and delivery, not the words themselves.