You are welcome but I am not sure that my answer is correct.

No llega la ambulancia.
(The ambulance hasn't arrived.)

However when I hear the sentence spoken, it is actually: "no ha llegado la ambulancia".  I'm assuming they can be translated the same way, although a different tense is used?

¡Wow! ¡Viviste in la republica de Georgia!¿Qué tal la vida allá?

if you want to preserve the present tense you can translate it as

the ambulance doesnt arrive

why are you guys so dead against thinking of venga as the command form of venir? it makes sense to me and fits nicely in a lesson so chock full of imperatives.

is it just me or does leo say se me olvído as opposed to olvidó? Would it still work in the present tense.

kikuyu

thanks for the info.

Venga is the usted form while all the other mandatos are in the tu form.  That's why it's an expression, rather than a mandato, here.

I listened again and to me it really does sound like se me olvidó. 

In the present tense, se me olvida, it might theoretically make sense but I get the sense that the preterite form is used much more commonly when the verb olvidar is used in this "no fault se" construction.

a fair point :-) but they always make a point of saying dont think of venga like that. though i cant see another way that makes sense.

I suppose if i was teaching english to a spaniard I might point out that the expression "come on" doesnt literally mean move towards me. perhaps thats what they are getting at.  it seems to me that the two expressions and the meanings map across pretty exactly.

:-)

I have struggled MIGHTILY with spanish reflexives, how to use them, when to use them, almost to the point of despair. I would tell myself that if I cannot grasp this apparantly "simple" concept then how can I possibly aspire to mastering even just conversational spanish. Now , after reading your explanation, it seems like the understanding is starting to seep in to my little brain! LOL I will re-read your explanation ten more times and maybe....just maybe..... I will have some small grasp of the concept of spanish reflexives. I can't thank you enough.  You have no idea how much distress this has caused me. Muchisima gracias.

El dolor era horrible durante cuatro horas y por fin dije a mi esposa que puede llamarla. 

Me dieron un inyección y un litre de suero y en media hora estaba todo bien. 

En la leccion JP y Lili preguntaron cuánto cuesta un viaje en ambulancia en Estados Unidos.  Voy a aprender pronto.  Sospecho unos dos mil dolares.    Afortunadamente mi seguro debería pagarlo. 

Este mensaje fue difícil porque tuve que decidir entre usando los verbos imperfecto y pretérito.  Hace dos meses no sé nada de los dos tipos de verbos.  Por tanto, es progreso.

Que quiero decir:

A few weeks ago I went on a ride in an ambulance.  I had a kidney stone (I know, it is ironic).

The pain was horrible for four hours and finally I told my wife that she could call it.

They gave me an injection and a liter of saline and in half an hour I was totally fine. 

In the lesson, JP and Lili wondered how much an ambulance trip cost in the US.  I'll find out soon.  I suspect around two thousand dollars.  Fortunately my insurance should pay it.

This post was difficult because I had to decide between using imperfect and preterite verbs.  Two months ago I didn't know anything about the two types of verbs.  So it is progress.