LAS VEGAS — No, this is not a site for the next round of the NCAA Tournament. Or as my friend in Los Angeles said last night when I told him I was here, "Oh, that's right ... 'cuz of course Las Vegas is on the way to Charlotte from Denver ..."

But honestly, it IS cheaper and easier to get a round-trip plane ticket to Charlotte, N.C., from Las Vegas than Denver. Put it this way, I looked into a one-way fare from Denver to Charlotte: $585. I even considered taking a train, but the Amtrak price was $485, and it would take over 48 hours of travel time.

So, shucks, Vegas is where I'm at.

But seriously, I'm getting a better idea of how those 'Ewa Beach Little League parents felt back in 2005, when their kids kept winning and advancing to the next round. Remember? One dad even ended up quitting his $60,000-a-year job because he had maxed out his vacation allotment and his company wouldn't give him any more time off.

Parents spent up to $14,000 following and supporting their kids through the tournament.

At the boys basketball state tournament last month, Ken Low was already doing the math as far as attending his son, Derrick's, Senior Night game in Pullman, Wash., and the NCAA Tournament, where possible first-round sites included Washington, D.C and Tampa, Fla.

"This could cost me six grand," said Ken, a mechanic for TheBus. "But then again ... how do I NOT go?"

I totally agree.

I've always felt it's hard to put a price tag on "once-in-a-lifetime" experiences. Money is something that can be hard to earn, but ultimately it usually can be recovered eventually. But if you miss out on a special event, there's no amount of money that can bring it back; it's gone forever.

As a parent, though, life must be full of those "once-in-a-lifetime" events, because how do you know which game will be your son or daughter's game of their life? Or, unfortunately, which game might be their last?

My parents came to most of my high school games, but we still don't remember why they somehow missed one JV basketball game at Kalani Gym when I went crashing to floor and dazily walked off the court with a concussion. I was back at practice a few days later, but what if it was a career-ending injury instead?

On the reverse end, what about the parent who misses out on his kid's no-hitter, or five-touchdown performance? I remember the look on one athletic director's face after getting a call from his wife on O'ahu, informing him of the game-winning home run his son had just hit in Little League. The AD was in Kona, doing his job as an administrator attending a state tournament event for his school.

The reality is, we all gotta work, we can't be at every single game. Especially if these games are during normal working hours, or on a different island, or even the Mainland.

Work often gets in the way, money often gets in the way.

But from what I have seen, Hawai'i parents in general are very supportive and usually find the ways and means to attend as many of their kids' games as they can, no matter when and where it is. I've been impressed at the number of parents who have traveled from O'ahu to Neighbor Island state tournaments and NI parents who show up on O'ahu, often on very short notice.

As I've learned on this trip, it takes a lot of quick planning and figuring out costs and logistics, not to mention the time involved in making the arrangements and actually packing and traveling.

And sometimes, the cost and logistics alone may not justify attending in person.

But when the "once-in-a-lifetime" factor gets thrown in there, like Ken Low said, "How do you NOT?"