Being "The Chief"

OMG,
The six weeks of Chief's Induction is finally OVER!

It has been a long, time-consuming, but extremely worthwhile process. It culminated yesterday (for me), 16 September, with the time-honored tradition of the pinning ceremony.

I won't go into what went on, but the final day/night is truly unforgettable. Its difficult, trying, but very rewarding once you get through the crucible.

So without further ado, here are a few photos of me, "The Chief":

This one shows Christina and I right after the pinning. That's Senior Chief Russell Girard to my right, along with my sponsor for this whole process, Chief David Spates - to whom I owe a lot. A WHOLE LOT.
Above it my first "real" moment as The CHIEF, when all the new Chiefs get rung aboard the Mess.

After getting rung aboard, we posted in front of the audience to sing "Anchor's Aweigh". I didn't have much of a voice left, but I belted out as loud as I could. Pictured are four of my new brothers: Chief Michael Wang, Chief Anibal Garza, Chief David Baker and Chief William Vue.

Sorry about the head in the way, our photographer was in the second row. This photo was taken as Senior Chief Jeff Chandler read the Chief's Creed.

Finally below: I've finally caught up! Now when folks ask for Chief Miccarelli, we'll have to ask, which one?