This Week's Hot Headlines

Rooftop igloos bubble up in this week's 5 most popular Dallas stories

Editor's note: A lot happened this week, so here's your chance to get caught up. Read on for the week's most popular headlines.

1. Hotels with weatherproof rooftop 'igloos' are a thing in Dallas-Fort Worth. A new hotel in Grapevine has introduced fun little igloos on their rooftop which let you hang outside in a weatherproof environment. Hotel Vin has added what they call rooftop "bubbles" on their Rioja Rooftop Terrace. They're the second local hotel to open igloos to patrons, after the Statler Dallas introduced them in December 2019.

2. Country radio legend's North Texas horse ranch listed for $8.2 million. For 25 years, country music radio icon Bob Kingsley and his wife and business partner, Nan, made their home at the legendary Bluestem Ranch, southwest of Weatherford. More than a year after Bob’s death at age 80 after battling bladder cancer, his widow has put their 141-acre horse ranch on the market for $8.2 million.

3. Downtown Dallas hotel to reopen underground bar with cocktail king Gabe Sanchez. One of Dallas' most popular food & beverage professionals is back behind the bar: Gabe Sanchez, formerly of Black Swan Saloon in Deep Ellum, is headed for the Joule Dallas. He'll spearhead the reopening of Midnight Rambler, the hotel's subterranean bar, while expanding the hotel's cocktail program overall.

4. New restaurant in northwest Dallas will serve spicy hot chicken 'til 4 am. The hot chicken keeps coming at us, this time with a new independently owned restaurant opening in northwest Dallas. Called S&J's Hot Chick, it will serve the spicy hot chicken that has become one of the past year's biggest trends in Dallas, with a menu of chicken sandwiches, chicken strips, sides, and shakes.

5. 6 Texans draw FBI interest following violent protest at Capitol in Washington, DC. Six Texans so far have drawn attention for attending the violent protest in Washington, D.C. on January 6, in which a mob broke into the Capitol and five people died. One man has been arrested, and another was fired from his job. All six have since walked back their involvement, claiming they weren't culpable despite photos and social media posts.

Gabe doing what Gabe does.

Photo courtesy of Midnight Rambler

Gabe doing what Gabe does.

A Health Update

Dallas country star Joshua Ray Walker gets hit by new round of cancer

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Joshua Ray Walker

Dallas country star Joshua Ray Walker is facing another round of cancer, and has launched a GoFundMe to help fight the battle.

Walker, who has been compared to Texas greats like Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, and Billy Joe Shaver, had been undergoing chemo to counteract Stage III colon cancer, and made an unfortunate discovery when doctors discovered the cancer had spread.

Walker posted the news on his Facebook page, stating that he had "some good and bad news to deliver."

"The good news is that I’ve finished chemo treatment!" he said. "It was extremely tough, and I want to thank y’all so much for supporting me through this experience. My body handled it reasonably well, and I’ve begun to rebuild my strength and immune system! The bad news is that upon the completion of tests to check on the status of my cancer post treatment, multiple nodes of varying sizes were found in both my lungs."

The discovery came as a surprise.

"Before I started chemo, I was told I had a 90 percent chance of having clear tests post treatment. So to find completely new growth in a new organ was something for which I was not prepared," he said. "This unfortunately means my cancer will likely be restaged to stage 4. I will get a lung biopsy, and start radiation soon."

Walker was doing a monthly show at the Kessler, the music venue in Oak Cliff, both for the income and to keep his spirits up. But facing this new development, he's launched a GoFundMe — with a goal of $300,000.

"When times are hard my instinct is to figure out how to survive financially," Walker said. "I’m launching a GoFundMe that will allow me to focus exclusively on my health and relationships during this precious time. I thank everyone so much in advance for their continued love and support. Love y’all so much."

He said he was choosing not to reveal all of the details about his prognosis.

"I wish I had more information to share but I’m still waiting to meet with a radiology oncologist following my biopsy surgery," he said. "I will keep y’all as updated as possible, and I will continue to fight my hardest. The odds have definitely shifted, but I’m not going to publish them here. It seems defeatist, and unnecessary. I’ll let you know what they were after I beat them. I’ve always lived life to the fullest and I will continue to do so."

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