In this photo taken Saturday, September 12, 1964, my mom and I check out our destroyed duplex beach house in Fernandina (Amelia Island, Florida) after Hurricane Dora.

When Patty and I visited the scene a few years ago, we were able to find part of a concrete block from the house.

Unfortunately, flood/storm insurance was not available on ocean-front property in those days, and my dad even had to pay $600 to have the rubble bulldozed away. Of course, that house was WAY too close to the water!

The Beatles played the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville the next evening, having flown to Key West to avoid the storm. My Uncle Johnny’s girlfriend was ill, and he offered me the ticket he had purchased for her. I was bummed and decided to stay at the family farm on the mainland and play Scrabble with my cousins. BAD DECISION!!!