• Today amid the announcement that five Bay Area counties would soon enter into a shutdown, the Contra Costa County health officer lamented that the "dark COVID winter" we've feared is here. “I and other county health officers in the Bay Area don’t think we can wait for the state’s new restrictions to go into effect later this month," Dr. Christopher Farnitano, the county's health officer, said today in an announcement, adding denizens of the region must act swiftly to save as many lives as we can and that the "dark COVID winter that we feared has arrived in the Bay Area." [KPIX]
  • Grocery shopping after Sunday in the Bay Area will look much different. In an unfortunate fit of déjà vu, shopping for sustenance and other essential goods will mirror the limited capacities — and long lines — many of us faced during the spring and early summer months. [Chronicle]
  • San Mateo is choosing to not prematurely shut down. A noticeable omission from today's Bay Area counties that chose to prematurely adopt California's stay-at-home order was San Mateo — a county official saying that "the County of San Mateo remains focused on following the state’s existing metrics and process while reinforcing the public's responsibility to comply with existing safety measures [...] to slow the spread of COVID-19 during the holiday season." [SFGate]
  • A socially distant and masked outdoor flea market will take place at 704 Larkin Street in the Tenderloin Saturday. [Mission Local]
  • Someone Friday wrote “nasty” in the San Francisco sky — with a “marry me” message also appearing in the clouds above Marin today, too. [KRON4]
  • Much like how internet access is scarce among the homeless, so is clean water — especially for those living in Oakland. [Oaklandside]
  • Chao Pescao, a new Cuban-Colombian eatery in Civic Center, is now open with a takeout-only model. [Hoodline]
  • A coyote apparently bit an East Bay runner Friday morning; coyote attacks on humans, however, continue to remain rare. [KRON4]
  • Bay Area-based Hewlett Packard announced it will move its primary offices to Texas. [Hoodline]
  • Use this pre-shutdown weekend to the fullest... and maybe order in a high tea service to cap it off. [The Bold Italic]

Image: Aerial shot of empty Dolores Park in San Francisco during the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020. (Courtesy of Getty Images via DutcherAerials)