Get 'em when you need 'em. That said, when you need 'em, get 'em! What is the point of wearing a uniform when you have the JOs wearing one thing and the hinges and up wearing something completely different anyway? Give me all the flack you want, call me a hinge-in-training, but nothing looks dumber than showing up to a formal event in Service Dress Bozo with mini medals and a bow tie. That ridiculous uniform makes everyone who wears it look like a 12-year-old kid wearing Dad's blazer.
Want a guaranteed recipe for disposing of mass quantities of grog? Schedule a dining-out with the uniform as Dinner Dress White (Jacket) with the usual exception of Dinner Dress White being optional for O-3 and below. I bet you'll be able to fine a significant portion of the mess for being out of uniform. People read it as "Chokers optional" and wear Full Dress White instead, because they can't wrap their minds around something as monumentally stupid looking as chokers with mini-medals actually being authorized. A uniform is a uniform and should be, thus, uniform.
Rant over. I've seen all ranks wearing mess dress, so chances are you're not the only guy out there with them on as a JO. You're just highlighting your superior style, insouciance, and
élan . . . which last I checked were mandatory in Naval Aviation anyway!
