Use of 'wished' in the present

Hoola   Mon May 11, 2009 5:47 pm GMT
I'm a native English speaker (BrE) and sometimes I hear people use 'wished' when it's clear they are talking about something they feel in the present. For example:

'I wished I had worked harder at school.'

I first noticed this from Americans but recently I have heard some English people say it. I would never say this, so I wonder what others think, and why it has come to exist in some dialects.
Jasper   Mon May 11, 2009 7:04 pm GMT
Hoola, depending on your perspective, the use of "wished" in the present tense is either a colloquialism or a vulgarism—similar to the use of "anyways" for "anyway". I think it's better not to use it.
Caspian   Mon May 11, 2009 7:13 pm GMT
I'm British myself, and I must admit I've never heard it, it does sound awkward and doesn't make sense to me.
Vic   Tue May 12, 2009 8:59 pm GMT
Agree. It's just wrong.