Okay, I am going to ask my questions a few at a time. It's the only way I will be able to process the answers.
I'll start with looking at Rusty's version of my introduction.
- I have done some reading on "hace ... [tiempo] ... que", including a link that I found that you posted in a different thread, and I think that I'm good with that construction. One quick question, though. If the verb that follows "que" is present tense, then it indicates something that has been ongoing? Like "Hace unas semanas que uso este foro..." where "uso" is present tense, so my use of the forum has been ongoing for several weeks. Right? But later in that same first paragraph, it says "Hace veinte años que estudié español...", the verb estudié is past tense, therefore this is something that happened twenty years ago and is NOT ongoing. Right?
- In the first sentence, I wrote "pero no me presenté todavía" and you changed it to "pero todavía no me he presentado". I have two questions about that construction. First - is the "todavía" always at the beginning of the phrase where it's used? Second - what does the "he" signify? Is it "here"? Or is it a conjugated verb that goes with the "presentar" (does it mean something like "have")? If so, what is the infinitive of that verb? And is the infinitive of "presentado" actually "presentarse"? AND ... is it similar in use to what you said a couple sentences later when you change what I wrote to "pero se me ha olvidado todo".
- Finally (for now), in that last sentence to which I just referred ("pero se me ha ovidado todo"), why is there both a "se" and a "me"? Is that a unique thing with "ovidar"?
Thanks Rusty (and all) - I'll have more questions later.....
