Yes it is a fashion thing I'm afraid, and it really is not a great look on these hot days. I have three hats, a Russian border guard hat for when it is bitter cold, the flaps keep my ears warm, if its not so cold I have a woolly hat that I can pull down over my ears if need be, but most of the year I wear an Australian kangaroo skin bush hat, it keeps the sun off my head and off my face in the summer, keeps my bald patch warm in the winter and doubles as the hounds drinking bowl when we are out.