When is the appropriate time to make your initial meld?

I have been playing the game for many years. My approach was always the philosophy of "down and out". While there are always exceptions, I was never one to wait for the pile - particularly if I needed to protect a lot of 3's or wanted to catch my opponents before they melded or had the good fortune of having 180 points in my hand to meld early in the game. Recently I played with a woman who got very angry at me because I melded after the second round and needed 125 points. She said, "You go down too quickly. Why don't you wait until you have a chance to pick up the pile and get a lot of points?"

What is your opinion?