present simple,present cont. or present perfect tense?

[njanja]

Hello,

Can you help me put the verbs into the present simple,present continuous,or present perfect tense?


The story of Richard`s day (show) the stress of modern life,but Richard could do a lot to help himself.In the first picture he (get) ready to go and see Mr Patel.He (have) a busy day so far.He(be) to three meetings and he(make) several phone calls.He (hurry) because he (not want)to be late and he only (have) half an hour to get there.Then just as he(leave) the office , the Managing Director (call).What Richard (do)?He (take) the call and then he (blame) the Managing Director because he`s late.But it isn`t the Managing Director`s fault.She (not know) that Richard (go) to an important appointment,so she probably(think) that it`s a convenient time to talk.Richard`s stress comes from the fact that he (not give) himself enough time for the journey.Then,while he (drive) to his appointment,he (become) more and more stressed.He`s late and Mr Patel is already waiting.Then an accident (happen) , because Richard ( not concentrate) on the road.

Thanks.

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by njanja

Hello,

Can you help me put the verbs into the present simple,present continuous,or present perfect tense?


The story of Richard`s day (show) the stress of modern life,but Richard could do a lot to help himself.In the first picture he (get) ready to go and see Mr Patel.He (have) a busy day so far.He(be) to three meetings and he(make) several phone calls.He (hurry) because he (not want)to be late and he only (have) half an hour to get there.Then just as he(leave) the office , the Managing Director (call).What Richard (do)?He (take) the call and then he (blame) the Managing Director because he`s late.But it isn`t the Managing Director`s fault.She (not know) that Richard (go) to an important appointment,so she probably(think) that it`s a convenient time to talk.Richard`s stress comes from the fact that he (not give) himself enough time for the journey.Then,while he (drive) to his appointment,he (become) more and more stressed.He`s late and Mr Patel is already waiting.Then an accident (happen) , because Richard ( not concentrate) on the road.

Thanks.

I will try to keep this in the historical present. This uses the present tenses to describe a scene. In a few instances, I would have chosen other verbs, but I tried to use yours.

The story of Richard`s day (shows) the stress of modern life, but Richard could do a lot to help himself. In the first picture he (gets) ready to go and see Mr Patel. He (has had) a busy day so far. He (has been) to three meetings and he (has make) several phone calls. He (hurries) because he (does not want) to be late and he only (has) half an hour to get there. Then just as he (leaves) the office, the Managing Director (calls). What (does) Richard (do)? He (takes) the call and then he (blames) the Managing Director because he`s late. But it isn`t the Managing Director`s fault. She (does not know) that Richard (is going) to an important appointment, so she probably(thinks) that it`s a convenient time to talk. Richard`s stress comes from the fact that he (has not given) himself enough time for the journey. Then, while he (drives) to his appointment, he (becomes) more and more stressed. He`s late and Mr Patel is already waiting. Then an accident (happens), because Richard (is not concentrating) on the road.

[njanja]

Thank you for your help!

Originally Posted by MikeNewYork

I will try to keep this in the historical present. This uses the present tenses to describe a scene. In a few instances, I would have chosen other verbs, but I tried to use yours.

The story of Richard`s day (shows) the stress of modern life, but Richard could do a lot to help himself. In the first picture he (is getting) ready to go and see Mr Patel. He (is having) a busy day so far. He (has been) to three meetings and he (has made) several phone calls. He (is hurrying hurrying) because he (does not want) to be late and he only (has) half an hour to get there. Then just as he (is leaving) the office, the Managing Director (calls). What (does) Richard (do)? He (takes) the call and then he (blames) the Managing Director because he`s late. But it isn`t the Managing Director`s fault. She (does not know) that Richard (is going) to an important appointment, so she probably(thinks) that it`s a convenient time to talk. Richard`s stress comes from the fact that he (has not given) himself enough time for the journey. Then, while he (is driving) to his appointment, he (becomes) more and more stressed. He`s late and Mr Patel is already waiting. Then an accident (happens), because Richard (is not concentrating) on the road.

I'd like to suggest some edits. I outlined them in red. Things like "leaving the office" and "driving to an appointment", despite the fact they are one action, don't happen in an instant. They happen over a period of time and therefore, are able to be interrupted. The accident happening is a dead giveaway that the present continuous should be used instead of the simple present. One action (driving) is interrupted by another (an accident), these two actions can only be reconciled by the use of a complex tense. Same with him leaving the office and getting a phone call. In the case of having a busy day; he's still having it. It's not over yet or else why would he be going to yet another appointment? The use of "so far" in this sentence is also a dead giveaway that the action that started in the past (having a busy day) is still progressing and will continue to do so for a finite amount of time.

-Nah-