Poison Oak

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A little something about poison oak: Poke is the Queen of the California landscape. Get to know it well. Learn to identify it in the dark, in the winter, in your sleep, with your eyes closed. Be ever reverent towards it, even when you haven't had an allergic reaction to it in years. I grew up with it and got it badly numerous times as a child. By the time I was 20 I was immune to it. But I show it great reverence to this day. I have seen friends do stupid things and get it systemically, so badly that they had to go to the emergency room for cortisone shots. I've known people who ate it by accident, burned it and inhaled the smoke by accident, got it in cuts, got it on their balls, you name it. They should have known better, but perhaps no one ever warned them. You, however, can't use that excuse - not after reading this. And once you understand Poke, spread the word to those around you when you go hiking or camping. The key to protection is reverence.

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