In It’s A Wonderful Life, one of the best Christmas movies ever created, if not one of the best films of all time, George Bailey gets the chance to see what the world would have been like if he had never been born. While we should probably have written out SPOILER ALERT before spilling those beans, we took the liberty to deem ourselves safe at this point, given the fact that said classic was released in 1946 and has subsequently been played on National American television repeatedly since then. If we just spoiled it for you, however, we are sorry — not for what we’ve done, mind you, but simply for the fact that you have never gotten a chance to view one of the most culturally defining films of the past century. Go and watch that movie…after you read this blog and become convinced to become a DiSanto Propane customer for life, that is.
We digress.
Like we said, George Bailey gets the chance to see what life would be like if he had never been born. He sees how his wife would have ended up — a sheepish shut-in — among many other friends and acquaintances he had yet to realize the kind of impact he had made upon them. Moreover, his community, Bedford Falls, had been bought and corrupted by the greedy Mr. Potter, who turned the picturesque town into a den of thieves and iniquity.
George Bailey, played by the singular James Stewart, receives a gift that many of us, perhaps even subconsciously, have ruminated upon: What kind of impact do I have? Do I make a difference to my family, my friends, my community? Would anyone care if I stopped showing up? Would those I’ve known be better off if I’d never been born? As morose of a thought as it is, it’s real. When George realizes the wealth of positive impact he’s made on those around him, including saving his brother’s life when they were just children, unspeakable joy is released in his life. The problems he once thought were life-and-death were squarely put into perspective by the love he shared with his family. It didn’t matter if he had to foreclose on his house; he loved and he was loved.
The movie ends with one of the most beautiful scenes this blog writer has ever been lucky enough to witness; the entire town rallies behind George and his family, and the true meaning of Christmas is witnessed and shared by all. Plus, an angel gets its wings!
The Meaning Of Life, Christmas, And…Propane?
Tragically, there is no good way to transition between talking about the above themes and propane. Not that propane isn’t important, by any means — in fact, that’s really our point. Rather than imagining what life would be like if you or someone you know had never been born, today’s post is about imagining what our lives would look like if propane had never been harnessed in the variety of ways that it now is. We love propane, maybe more than we should, as evidenced by our attempt to compare it to the most wonderful elements of life, but bear with us here. We are a propane company after all, so we live, eat, breathe, and sweat propane. Not literally of course, that wouldn’t be good.
We digress.
What Would Life Be Like Without Propane?
The rest of this post is going to be quick-fire, so buckle up. Since there are so many applications for propane, we’re going to bounce around a little bit. Consider yourself warned!
- Consider yourself warmed too – Propane is used for furnaces, water heaters, grills, fireplaces, and many other appliances. While we might take many of these uses for granted, as is only natural, propane is known as a clean, safe, and efficient energy source, especially when compared with alternatives. If propane didn’t exist, we aren’t claiming that you’d freeze in the winter or anything, but you might have to pay a bit more to stay that way, the sear on your steak wouldn’t be as clean (charcoal grills are a joke, don’t get us started), and your carbon footprint might approach the size of Bigfoot’s. Propane rules supreme, yet again.
- You wouldn’t be able to play cards with your family while you camp inside your tent. Sure, you’d have the warm glow from your campfire, but once it’s time to turn in, propane torches and lamps are essential for the card-playing experience. Sure, there are battery-powered flashlights and lamps around, but they don’t have the classic hum quite like a propane lantern, which gets us nostalgic just thinking about it.
- Say goodbye to hot air balloon rides, as propane is the primary fuel used for hot air balloons. We aren’t authorities on the matter, so it might be possible for another kind of fuel to do the job, but something tells us it just wouldn’t be the same. It almost certainly wouldn’t be as affordable or environmentally-friendly as propane is, that much we are sure of.
- There would probably be fewer impressive explosions in the movies if propane had never been invented. It’s commonly used in the movie industry as a high-energy fuel for special effects and explosions. This is largely due to the fact that it’s inexpensive (if not relatively clean, but we aren’t in the mood to give Hollywood the benefit of the doubt on that one).
- The average homeowner who utilizes propane as their primary energy source wouldn’t be able to save an average of $100 in annual energy costs when using propane ranges and ovens. Likewise, the food they prepare would probably not taste as great either, because propane ranges offer superior heat control along with faster heat-up and cool times. Propane saves you time, money, and even makes your food taste better!
- Folks who have switched to propane water heaters understand the joy of being able to take a lengthy, hot shower — without having to worry about running out of hot water. Because propane water heaters run continuously “on-demand,” they have triple the water flow. The world would be a more stressful, less relaxed place if we weren’t able to take the odd 30-minute shower every now and then to sort ourselves out.
- Commercial organizations who have been harnessing the power of propane for fleet fueling and forklift operations would be less profitable than they are right now. Because forklifts powered with propane have lower life-cycle costs (almost half that of gasoline with no possibility of pilferage), propane-powered forklifts usually last twice as long as gasoline forklifts. Use propane, and save a forklift’s life.
- Propane-powered school buses are cleaner for communities and students, offer more savings in terms of overall cost, and are simply safer than alternative fuel sources. Because propane immediately converts to a gaseous state upon being released from a pressurized tank, there is a reduced risk of accidents like ingestion when using propane. And sure, we aren’t trying to suggest there’s an epidemic of kids drinking school bus gas or anything, but who knows what the future holds? Hashtag Tide Pods.
- Finally, if propane had never been harnessed, we wouldn’t have been able to write this blog post, and you wouldn’t have been able to read it, and your life would be much, much worse as a result.
And speaking of making your life better, DiSanto Propane is Upstate New York’s top option for propane supply. For both commercial and home use, we can help you save money while using a clean fuel source. Become a DiSanto customer today!