Kathy Matheson has been solving crossword puzzles since junior high, when a friend intent on winning the school’s magazine drive gave her a subscription to Games Magazine as a birthday present. (The editor of Games back then? Will Shortz.) Today she lives in her adopted hometown of Philadelphia. Alter ego of @kmatheson

Crossword Kathy: There’s no soft-peddling it: Today’s puzzle was completely given away by the title.

“Soft T’s” is an aural clue that common phrases would be tweaked by changing the sound of a hard T. So “What faking a stomachache might entail?” is…

Read the full post at crosswordkathy.net: Soft T’s

New York Times crossword April 28 / Constructed by Patrick Berry

Police take a young man into custody after a shooting in East Germantown. Photograph for the Gun Crisis Reporting Project by Joseph Kaczmarek.

• One year later: On the street with the Gun Crisis Reporting Project
• Police grab suspect after witnessing fatal double shooting in Kensington
• Police find man shot four times in the head Friday afternoon in West Oak Lane
• Tears flow at memorial service for homicide victims Thursday night in Downingtown
• Ramsey cautions parents after toy gun incident; risks and buybacks reported
• Mapped: One dead, four wounded in shooting incidents reported Thursday across Philadelphia
• Confrontation leads to fatal shooting in Wednesday night in Fernhill
• Police report finding child alone with gun in a car Wednesday night in Kensington
• Man found shot to death in burning house
• Child witnesses double murder in Kensington overnight
• Shooter wounds 19-year-old Tuesday evening in Allegheny West
• NPR’s Week In Politics: Why Gun Control Failed In The Senate
• Australian news team examines gun violence and reduction efforts in Philadelphia
• Police investigate shooting scene early Monday in West Philadelphia
• Police take young man into custody at gunpoint after shooting
• Surveillance video: Jacket logos could lead to suspects in second armed robbery at same 7-11 in Southwest Philadelphia
• #GunCrisis: Philadelphia Week in Review

Young men hold candles during a service held in remembrance of homicide victims Thursday night in Downingtown, Pa. Photographs for the Gun Crisis Reporting Project by Tom Kelly IV.

Kathy Matheson has been solving crossword puzzles since junior high, when a friend intent on winning the school’s magazine drive gave her a subscription to Games Magazine as a birthday present. (The editor of Games back then? Will Shortz.) Today she lives in her adopted hometown of Philadelphia. Alter ego of @kmatheson

Crossword Kathy: I just flew in from San Francisco yesterday morning, and boy are my arms tired. (Rim shot.) Actually, my brain is tired because I took the red-eye and am still a little behind on my sleep. Good thing today’s puzzle required only basic mental gymnastics – or “front flips,” as the title calls them.

The theme requires solvers to…

Read the full post at crosswordkathy.net: Front Flips

New York Times crossword April 21 / Constructed by Jonah Kagan

Family members gather around a makeshift memorial Monday night to remember Adrian Abad Zamora — who was shot to death two nights earlier in the Harrowgate section of Philadelphia. Photograph for the Gun Crisis Reporting Project by Joseph Kaczmarek.

• Updated map: Philadlephia weekend shooting victim reports, beginning 04.19.13
• Man kills ex-wife with shotgun; dies in shootout with police, officials say
• Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams wants your help
• Police remove body of man killed in East Mount Airy
• Recent reports: Children killed and wounded in gunfire incidents across the US
• Freakonomics Radio: How to Think About Guns
• Family gathers to remember shooting victim Adrian Abad Zamora
• Last week: Dozens gathered for discussion of grassroots gun violence solutions in Southwest Philadelphia
• Family and friends mourn at fatal shooting scene in Strawberry Mansion overnight
• #GunCrisis: Philadelphia Week in Review

Investigators gather around the victim’s car after a man with a shotgun killed his former wife Thursday evening in Feasterville, Pa., just after she left a dress shop with her teenage daughter. Photograph for the Gun Crisis Reporting Project by Joseph Kaczmarek.

Kathy Matheson has been solving crossword puzzles since junior high, when a friend intent on winning the school’s magazine drive gave her a subscription to Games Magazine as a birthday present. (The editor of Games back then? Will Shortz.) Today she lives in her adopted hometown of Philadelphia. Alter ego of @kmatheson

Crossword Kathy: Elizabeth C. Gorski is one of my favorite constructors – she always has something clever up her sleeve. (Here’s a recent interview with her.) But I think I have found her weakness: Chocolate. Today’s puzzle titled “My Treat” is all about the sweet stuff, as we know from the answer to..”

Read the full post at crosswordkathy.net: ‘My Treat‘

Kathy Matheson has been solving crossword puzzles since junior high, when a friend intent on winning the school’s magazine drive gave her a subscription to Games Magazine as a birthday present. (The editor of Games back then? Will Shortz.) Today she lives in her adopted hometown of Philadelphia. Alter ego of @kmatheson

Crossword Kathy: So an “anagram your name” meme came through my Facebook feed recently: Click the link, put in your name and – presto! – an amusing rearrangement appears. Or not-so-amusing, in my case: Kathy Matheson becomes OH MY! THAT SNAKE.

Which brings me to today’s easy puzzle. “Fitting Rearrangements” alludes to the…

Read the full post at crosswordkathy.net.

New York Times crossword April 7 / Constructed by Matt Ginsberg

Neighbors react as police remove the victim’s body from the scene of a fatal shooting Friday afternoon in the Kingsessing section of Philadelphia. Photograph for the Gun Crisis Reporting Project by Joseph Kaczmarek.

• Loved ones gather to remember shooting victim Stacey Berry
• Woman shot and killed during argument Saturday night in Kensington
• Fatal shooting brings grief to neighborhood in Kingsessing
• Good Friday vigil calls for end to gun violence ‘for the love of our children’
• Mayors Against Illegal Guns participants hold event in Norristown on Thursday
• Double shooting leaves man critically wounded; woman in stable condition late Thursday night in South Philadelphia
• Shooter leaves man critically wounded on North Philadelphia pedestrian bridge Thursday afternoon
• Mayors Against Illegal Guns leading National Day to Demand Action to end gun violence
• Emergency room makes compelling classroom for students seeking solutions to gun violence
• Third man found shot to death in Philadelphia in less than 24 hours
• Man found lying on the street, shot numerous times in the back Monday night
• Addressing gun violence: Key events this week in Philadelphia
• Neighbors, friends and family members grieve at fatal shooting scene
• The most important risk associated with guns and mental illness is suicide
• #GunCrisis: Philadelphia Week in Review

Philadelphia Police officials gather at the scene of a fatal shooting in the Harrowgate section of the city Monday night. Photograph for the Gun Crisis Reporting Project by Tom Kelly IV.