[lojban] Re: I have been up since 6 o'clock

["Jorge Llambías" <lojban-out@lojban.org>]

On 5/8/06, Yanis Batura <ybatura@mail.ru> wrote:
> "I have been up since six o'clock".
>
> I failed to translate this, because it has two modals:
>
> 1) It started at 6 o'clock    {co'a}
>
> 2) It goes on now             {ca'o}

Minor point here: {ca'o} indicates ongoingness, but not necessarily now.
It can mean that the event was going on {pu ca'o}, is going on {ca ca'o},
or will be going on {ba ca'o}. You can still use {ca'o} for "going on now",
but {ca ca'o} is more clear if it's important to distinguish it from "going on
before" or "going on later".

> A natural way to translate would have been
>
> {mi ca'o cikna co'a lo xamoi cacra}
>
> But isn't {co'a lo xamoi cacra} a modal to {ca'o cikna}? If so, at 6 o'clock
> I was in-process of being awake, and not starting? Not good.
>
> Or {ca'o-} and {co'a lo xamoi cacra} are on the same level to {cikna}?

I don't see a problem with it. At an unstated reference point (probably right
now) the following event is ongoing: (me being awake with start at sixth hour).

mu'o mi'e xorxes


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