Tradition and Technology: Thanksgiving Edition

A fair amount of nostalgia is an important part of any holiday.

Granted, at times, the very departure from normal holiday traditions can be a coping mechanism to get one through. For the most part, however, traditions are what make a holiday a holiday.

As technology comes for more and more traditions, one can’t help but appreciate the upgrades while sparing a little grief for what once was.

Turkey Troubles

Once upon a time, people with desperate turkey troubles only had access to the Butterball hotline where experts could walk them through solving their poultry woes. While the helpline still remains, they’ve expanded to allow email, social media, and their website to provide turkey support.

Plus, people can always just google “what to do if I my turkey is turning blue and levitating.”

Photo Uncertainty

With the family gathered, Grandma usually pulled out her camera and asked everyone to smile.

Often, Grandma wasn’t much of a photographer, and she might cut off the tops of heads or feet.

Before digital cameras, the results of the photo would only be known after the film had been developed. It might be weeks before anyone realized that Cousin Walter was making a face, Aunt Lisa had been captured mid-sneeze, and Uncle Joe and Uncle Howard — who never could get along — were glaring at each other rather than smiling at the camera.

With no do-overs on offer, only the imperfect photos memorialized the event.

Individual photos of food were rare with a limited number of photos per film roll.

Now, everyone (or almost everyone) at the table has a phone to capture their own photos of the event. Unlimited by a camera roll, the only limits are people’s imaginations — and rapidly cooling food — to make entire albums with unique aesthetics and artistic flair.

And if Grandma does fail to capture the tops of anyone’s heads, a quick use of AI can probably correct the problem.

Newspaper Quests

Thanksgiving used to require one person to leave the house in search of the Black Friday newspaper. These papers could be hard to find and might require a stop at more than one gas station to find the biggest newspaper of the year. After returning to the house, family members would rifle through the ads. The kids examined the toy sections, and the adults took notes of which store had the cheapest socks.

People would establish a game plan of what store to visit first in the wee smas of the following day. Most stores offered coffee and doughnuts to the early morning shoppers.

With the internet, Black Friday ads are often posted online days in advance. Early mornings have been pushed back so far that many people don’t even have time to express gratitude and eat Thanksgiving dinner before they’re off to buy. Others now won’t shop on Black Friday in protest of Black Friday taking over Thanksgiving Thursday.

Plus, many people would rather shop online with a broader selection, possibly cheaper prices, and no need to shiver while waiting in line for a store to open — with no guarantee that the item one is waiting for won’t have already been snatched up by another shopper.

Best Change

Perhaps one of the best ways technology has changed Thanksgiving is being able to more easily connect with those far away. With family scattered across great distances, having the ability to video call and chat on a holiday makes the world seem a little smaller and loved ones a little closer.

From the team at Swan Software Solutions to you and yours, have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!

And if you’d love it if you had a technology partner for whom you could be grateful, schedule a free assessment to find out how we can help.