Is there a way to change the icloud email address associated with your Apple ID?

You can't change your @me address, except by creating a new iCloud account. But you can create an alias @icloud address that will receive email in your current iCloud inbox. More details here: http://support.apple.com/kb/PH2622. Just be aware that once you create an alias you can't later turn that into a full iCloud account, move it to another account, or reactivate it if you ever delete it.

Since your Apple ID is already associated with the current iCloud account (and the account cannot be delete, it can only be abandoned), you can't use it to create another. You would need to create a new Apple ID with a new non-Apple email address to create a new iCloud account. You can still use your current ID for everything else; the iCloud ID does not need to be the same as the ID you use for other services (iTunes, etc.).

You would then have to migrate your iCloud data to the new account and turn on your iCloud data syncing. When you turn Mail to On, you can create your new @icloud email address (but type carefully since once created it cannot be changed). You @me iCloud email address would remain associated with the iCloud account you are leaving but it sounds like you don't want to use it anyway. You can set up email forwarding to forwared email sent to your @me address to your new @icloud address while your contacts transition to your new address.

If that sounds like something you want to do, I can give you the steps to migrate your data to the new account.

You're welcome.