> There are too few of these people in the world. Many, maybe most, of us don't have either the skills, connections, or the free time necessary to do it in. I

> There are too few of these people in the world. Many, maybe most, of us don't have either the skills, connections, or the free time necessary to do it in. I think this is what the OP meant by "once in a lifetime opportunity", in that it is once in his lifetime.