This is not, in my opinion, a gerund. We have here the present progressive, formed with BE + the -
ing form of the verb. If you want to give another name to this -
ing form, then it is surely the present participle, not the gerund.
This is a fairly normal use of the progressive (continuous/durative) form:
[FONT="]4[FONT="]. [/FONT][FONT="]Andrea's always losing her keys.[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT="]In [4]. the use of always, normally associated by virtue of its meaning with the unmarked tense seems at first sight illogical. However, as we have seen in [3]the use of the Durative Aspect with a short action stresses the repetition of that action. The combination of the Durative Aspect and always tells us that this is a an situation that actualises repeatedly, but because the duration of the whole series of losing is limited, it is not presented as a permanent state of affairs[/FONT]
[FONT="]This combination is associated by some writers with some idea of the speaker's emotional attitude, but this will be made explicit not just by the words, but by the whole context of situation and the speaker's tone. It is not true to suggest that it always expresses the speaker's irritation; with change of tone of voice and facial expression, the person uttering [4]could express irritation, resignation, amusement or a number of other feelings. Here, as is almost always the case in English, it is context and other factors that express feelings, not simply the words. The combination can just as easily be used to express pleasure, as in:[/FONT]
[FONT="]4a[FONT="]. He's always buying me flowers.[/FONT][/FONT]
from: http://www.gramorak.com/Articles/Tense.pdf, page 15