Another TMEA Checklist

A few years ago, I posted a checklist of things I usually do at TMEA. This year was a little different, so I'll post the same items and see if the answers agree:

• Spend quite a bit of time in the exhibit hall? Check. It's impossible not to do that if you truly want to experience TMEA.


• Spend way too much money at the Tap Music (rare CD store) booth? Nope. They weren't there this year. Maybe the economy didn't allow them to come down from Iowa...


• Eat way too many big meals on the Riverwalk? Check, with the giant chimichanga at The Original Mexican Restaurant taking the biggest toll later in the day.


• See some people I hadn't seen in several years at the UNT reunion? Check.


• Make jokes about how, when, I was in college, the free food at said reunion would serve as Friday night's dinner? Check.


• Watch someone propose to his girlfriend during the serenade at the Sinfonia sing? Believe it or not, no. Maybe it was too close to Valentine's Day, and anyone who wanted to do that was going to save it for Saturday night on the Riverwalk. (And I'll have more about the sing later.)


• Get to the convention center in time to see the high-school all-state jazz ensemble on Saturday morning, making it with just minutes to spare? Nah, I was up quite a while before that, and we were there in plenty of time.


• Fight the crowds at the Rivercenter food court at lunchtime? Almost, but when we saw the crowds (still massive at 1:15), we forsook the mall for a trip to County Line BBQ on the Riverwalk, where we got seated rather quickly.


• Get a table there by spying someone about to leave one and pouncing on it 2.5 seconds after they'd gotten up? Nope; see above.


• See the Andean Fusion band playing some sort of a classic-rock cover song on ancient wooden flutes just outside that food court? Check; they were playing every night we were there this year.

Among the things I usually do but didn't get to do this year included dining at Casa Rio (first time in a long time that I'd missed that) and going to either the Rivercenter Starbucks or the Hear Music store, though I passed by each of them several times. I also didn't get to see any of the high school all-state concert bands this year, partially because of the early departure, and also because one of them conflicted with my student's concert.

As always, it was a great hang; I look forward to this week every year.