From a media release:
CBC today announced a new, one-hour weekly primetime show, WHAT’RE YOU AT? WITH TOM POWER, premiering this Sunday, April 5 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT) on CBC TV and CBC Gem. Welcoming audiences into his home for a weekly national catch up during these unprecedented times, award-winning host Tom Power will share an uplifting and inspiring mix of interviews, storytelling, musical performances and perspectives as he checks in with Canadians across the country.
Each Sunday, Power will connect virtually with Canadians on the frontlines and from all walks of life, including artists and storytellers, musicians offering intimate performances from their homes, and everyday heroes helping their families and communities. Each show will incorporate a mix of live and pre-taped segments. This Sunday’s debut episode will feature an interview with Schitt’s Creek co-creator, showrunner and star Daniel Levy ahead of the hit comedy’s finale; a performance by groundbreaking JUNO Award-winning singer and songwriter Jessie Reyez, and conversations with Canadians in their communities sharing how they are navigating this challenging time, including three first responders.
“Back home in Newfoundland when you see someone you ask ‘What’re you at?’ There is a debate on the spelling but it generally means ‘How are you?’ or ‘How are you holding up?’,†said Power. “At a time when we’re all searching for meaning and connection, I am honoured to have this opportunity to check in with how Canadians are doing each week and celebrate those who are making a difference in their communities.â€
I caught “What’re you at?” this evening and have a request for Tom: please keep those eyebrows down the next time someone mentions children are still expected to learn to tell time with an analog clock. Analog clocks are magical. A quick glance at the clockface tells a twelve-hour story. An hour hand halfway between the 9 and 10 announces “half past 9†or “2 and a half hours till lunchâ€, if you eat at noon. No calculations needed. You can see it.
A child sitting in a classroom watching the clock on the wall can quickly see the distance the hands have to move until recess time.
Children who learn to tell time on an analog clock are learning fractions, counting by ones and by fives. On a more basic level they learn the concepts of “before†and “afterâ€; they can see before and after on the face of the clock. They are not just reading time, as they do on a digital clock, they are understanding time.
They learn to translate analog to digital, and they learn that the journey of two and sometimes three hands around the circumference of a clockface, often accompanied by a delightful “tick-tock” is so much more lyrical than the relentless, boring “click, click, click” or even more boring mute advancement of numerals on a digital clock.
And when the lights go out and the batteries die, I can wind up the old analog alarm clock, or get out the sundial, which is also analog, and know how much time I have left.
Merilyn Ruth Liddell – retired Grade One teacher
Hi Tom, I am a retired special ed. teacher who lives in Wittenburg Nova Scotia. Over the years I have had the pleasure of seeing some of the finest musicians on the planet and many of them are here. I would like to recommend Dave Gunning for your show. Besides having won numerous awards, Dave has brought much needed attention to the contamination caused by a paper mill in his community. He public attention to this, which was helpful in the mill being closed.
Please have a look at Dave’s web site ,
Thanks Tom