desert broom

Today I learned that if the desert broom starts blooming in town, and you feel like you suddenly have the worst cold you've ever had, you should not go for a walk at the national park, even though it is outside town. It is not far enough outside, and your terrible cold-like symptoms can morph into terrible flu-like symptoms. The only good thing here is that (for me) reactions don't last nearly as long as actual colds or flu.