You have spent the last 18+ years of your life accumulating your awesome hat collection. Now, you've hit the big leagues. You're excited to move into your USF apartment, but you can only bring so many suitcases! How do you decide which hats to bring? Luckily, you've got an expert opinion, straight from the source.
Do's
First of all, once you're in Tampa, you've got to grab a University of South Florida baseball cap. Contrary to popular belief, hats actually cool your noggin, so a hat like this is perfect for any day at the ball game. Tillies are great hats too, especially if you plan on spending a lot of time in the Bay. I see a lot of students wearing them in the dog park; you'll fit right in! Coolie hats offer a unique take for beating the heat, but might be a little too distracting for casual wear. A nice alternative would be the classic straw hat, with a wide brim all the way around. Lastly, we come to bucket hats. Bucket hats have recently come back in style, but not everyone can pull them off; you'll have no problem starting a conversation by the pool!
Don'ts
The last time snow fell on the city of Tampa was 1977. If you're moving into a USF apartment, some hats just won't be practical for the climate you're in and will just collect dust in your walk-in closet. While beanies look really cool for city life, you won't really have a need for them in Tampa. The same goes for toboggans, or really any hats with wool and/or earflaps. If you're moving from a state with a lot of snow, it might be worth it to bring one to wear in and out of the airport, but other than that, you're just going to make yourself sweat. Cowboy hats seem very cool in the store, and they work great for Halloween costumes and horseback riding, if that's something you do often. At the end of the day, though, they're just out-of-place on campus and in Florida as a whole.
The draw to hats like baseball caps and tillies is their ability to cool your head by covering it with an insulated, sun-proof top. Visors, though useful in a few different sports, will actually make your head hotter if you plan to wear one in the Sunshine State. Because of the lack of aerial protection, rays from the sun will shine directly on the top of your head, which could give your hair some highlights while sunburning your scalp. Pack a visor if it's a die-hard fashion statement or you plan on spending a lot of time at the tennis courts, but otherwise, I advise you to leave it at home.
There are a lot of Do's and Don'ts when packing for an apartment near USF, so hopefully the above analysis can give you some clarity. Hats are a really cool way to express yourself and can really help keep the sun out of your eyes. However, not every hat is right for Tampa, so think about what you would use each hat for, and decide from there.