When I first posted about the 2C Solar Light Cap back in April, I thought it looked a little silly. Especially with that promotional photo (above), which made it look like some ominous, hat-shaped spaceship.

Then I got my own, and I felt oddly excited.

The 2C is a cap with solar-powered lights under the brim. It comes in a multitude of colors, but they only had red left as far as samples went. While I tend toward neutrals when picking out hats, I decided to consider this a good thing. After all, I happen to think that I look hot in red.

The first time I tried it was in bed.

"What the hell is that!?" my husband shouted, startled awake by the bright beams of light that had appeared when I'd compressed the button underneath the brim.

"It's my new book light," I told him petulantly. He put on his eyemask. The cats tried to pounce on the light. I was thrilled that I was reading without an overhead light, though it felt slightly weird to be wearing a baseball cap in bed.

The next time I tried it was on the bus. I figured that, as NJ Transit passengers can tend toward the psychotic, no one would give me a second glance. Still, as I happily read my book on the bus during my morning commute, I couldn't help but feel people's eyes on me. I wasn't used to being the nut job.

Undeterred, once in NYC, I asked a fellow coworker if I could recharge my hat on her windowsill. She seemed intrigued, though not necessarily ready to buy her own. 

Finally, I took it one of the evening walks the hubby and I take. I marveled over and boasted about the strength of the light beams on the street ahead of us as the sky darkened. Still, I turned off the lights every time a car approached. In the suburbs of NJ, it doesn't take much for beeps and rude comments. And I am a fragile being.

The verdict?

There are sooo many ways to use this electricity- and battery-free hat, whether as a book light, as a means of searching through a dim closet, finding your way through a dark condo in the middle of the night without stepping on the cats, spelunking...

The world, however, may not be ready for something so wild. Perhaps I could start a trend?

[$39.90, 2C] 

Related: Hat-Shaped Spaceship Spotted in the Night Sky