Today I saw something which embodies my attitude toward playing music.

It is the magazine of the National Federation of Music Clubs, and on the glossy cover it invites me to attend the Fall Meeting in June, 2012.

The Fall meeting in June? They don't explain why. Did they forget to have the fall meeting last autumn? Or are they having it early, perhaps because they are taking a bus tour in Europe or are taking a granddaughter to college? They don't say. Whatever the reason, I applaud the laid-back attitude. Music is supposed to be a pleasure, not a chore.

I belong to the Kansas City chapter, and the chapter is more than 100 years old. I guess after your first hundred years you can let down your hair.