That’s what my friend, Mikey, asked me this morning. We were having coffee at our favourite cafe, overlooking the local golf course. It wasn’t a question I expected to be asked, I’ll be honest, so I took a great deal of time thinking about it before answering.

“I wasn’t always happy like this. In fact, six or seven months ago I was quite miserable. I’m not entirely sure what changed. It was around the time that the new Crazy Fox game came out, but I don’t think that’s what changed me. I signed up to get commercial solar from a Melbourne business around the same time, so maybe it was that.”

“You think that solar panels made you happy?” Mikey asked.

I shrugged. “It’s possible. There does seem to be a burden off my shoulders, knowing that I’m helping the planet survive through clean energy. I’ve got a 100kw solar system, which is a crazy amount for my small business, but I’d rather have more than I need rather than less.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” Mikey said. “Say, how much power does a 100kw solar system produce, anyway?”

I laughed. “More than you would ever need, Mike. You really should consider jumping on the solar power ship.”

“It sounds like a good idea, but what would you do if the sun exploded, or suddenly disappeared? How would you have power?”

“Well, if the sun vanished, we’d all perish, wouldn’t we? And if it exploded, same thing. I’m not too worried about it.”

Mikey nodded and took a sip of his coffee. “Okay, well what if the Earth stopped rotating and we were stuck on the dark side of the planet, in perpetual night?”

“What are the odds of that happening?”

“Pretty low, but what would you do if it happened?”

“I don’t know. I guess I would become a raider, breaking the laws of the land for my own personal gain. Maybe I’d start a whole gang of people who lost their electricity because they used solar power. Then I’d come and raid your house as vengeance for ever asking this question.”

“Huh,” Mikey said. “Well, thanks for answering.”

“No problem.”

I was talking with my brother last night and I just can’t believe how widespread solar energy is becoming. I remember the days when it was still considered a crazy idea that was reserved just for hippies and the like, but nowadays it seems like everyone is getting on board. It’s no longer just this niche of society that’s interested in it, solar has been accepted into the mainstream consciousness and it seems like now everyone is taking measures to help the environment.

For example, my brother was telling me that, in addition to having a couple of solar panels on the roof at home, the company he works for has recently invested in them. I know this may be a little naive of me, but I didn’t even realise there were companies that offered commercial solar energy for businesses. I guess that’s probably because all the advertising you see are aimed at people like you and me, the regular Joe on the street who can put some panels up on their house. But just because we don’t see it, doesn’t mean commercial solar isn’t a thing.

If you think about it, solar actually makes tons of sense for businesses. Offices would use a lot of energy during the day with all their computers and office equipment. Having a well thought out energy plan or maybe even a form of commercial energy storage could be a major advantage economically. I mean, everyone’s heard the stories of people who can actually make money through having a couple of solar panels, just reducing that electricity bill by a little bit every month would be really nice. And then, at the same time, they would be reducing their carbon footprint. It’s a bit of a win-win – do something good for the environment and save money at the same time. It almost sounds too good to be true.