jack112  +  176302 Fri, 30 Dec 05 03:44 AM 1. I have never had a problem with my heater draining the battery. Then again, came summer I replaced a fried rectifier. (Is the latter sentence okay with the first sentence with present perfect? Or do I need to use past perfect for the first sentence?) Thanks. jack112 Joined on Thu, Jul 22 2004 Regular Member 715 Past Perfect, Present Perfect

	Mister Micawber  +  176338 Fri, 30 Dec 05 07:31 AM Yes, I think you should put the first verb in past perfect, since the fact no longer holds true (if I understand your mechanics aright). Mister Micawber Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004 Yokohama Veteran Member 30,760 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.' Verbs, Past Perfect

	jack112  +  176656 Fri, 30 Dec 05 07:50 PM 1. I have never had a problem with my heater draining the battery except for that summer summer I replaced a fried rectifier. (Is this okay with present perfect? Could I also use past perfect here too?) Thanks. jack112 Past Perfect, Present Perfect

	MrPedantic  +  176853 Sat, 31 Dec 05 03:02 AM Interesting. I wonder whether we can say that the "Then again" corrects the present perfect + "never" of the first sentence, as a stylistic device. Though it is a little unclear and tortuously written. Maybe: 1. I have never had a problem with my heater draining the battery. Then again, last summer I had to replace a fried rectifier. MrP MrPedantic Joined on Tue, Oct 12 2004 Veteran Member 12,592 ...opella forensis / adducit febris... Present Perfect

	Mister Micawber  +  177987 Mon, 02 Jan 06 12:28 PM Nice observation, MrP.  In discourse, it could well be.  I would like to see the speaker expostulate more about his poor memory, however. Mister Micawber

	jack112  +  178682 Wed, 04 Jan 06 01:07 AM Are both of these correct? If not, why? 1. I have been calling them for 30 minutes now and no one is picking up. 2. I have been calling them for 30 minutes now and no one was picking up. (If this one is incorrect, why so? #1 is right and #1 uses only past tense? Is the structure for #2 supposed to be present perfect + present tense?) 3. I have been calling them for 30 minutes now and no one has been picking up. (Is this one correct? Would you use this one out of all the other ones?) Thanks. jack112 Tenses, Present Tenses, Present Perfect, Past Tenses

	Mister Micawber  +  178690 Wed, 04 Jan 06 01:47 AM Well, I definitely like and use #3.  I suppose that #1 is possible in conversation, with the speaker stressing that there has still been no answer right up to now (yet note that I automatically go to present perfect in my explication).  #2 repels me. Mister Micawber Conversations, Present Perfect

	MrPedantic  +  179132 Thu, 05 Jan 06 12:26 AM That's interesting. Maybe there's a BrE/AmE division here. I'd say: 1. I've been calling them for 30 minutes now and no one is answering. ] Fine; neutral. 2. I had been calling them for 30 minutes and no one was answering. ] Fine as modified. 3. I've been calling them for 30 minutes now and no one has been answering. ] Fine; "emphatic" or "pointed" or "through gritted teeth". MrP MrPedantic