I can see me doing that. When you experience true silence and look at pics of the night sky without light pollution, you realize that we are not living as we are meant to. Back on topic: I'm kinda glad I have not seen my strays recently, now that there are owls here that hunt on the ground. But I doubt that the cats would take them on.
I've taken in a feral cat before so I know that it can be a long process. I don't think either the gray one or the black one are feral, although they've been on their own for a couple of years.
They're called owls because when they hurt you say OW! Anyone who abandons a pet deserves prison time. https://www.hopeforpaws.org/
Again today, the black cat was watching me work in the backyard, like he just enjoyed watching me work or, more likely, he is just sizing me up, to decide whether I could be trusted. I laid down in the yard, about fifteen feet from him. I pretended to sleep, and he pretended to sleep. But I couldn't get him to come closer to me. After about twenty minutes, I went back to work and he left for somewhere. I probably won't be seeing the gray one and the black one at the same time because the gray one is afraid of the black one. Except for two kittens, everyone is afraid of the black one, even a couple that are considerably larger.
Someone ( not mentioning any names ) is working pretty hard to adopt cats that they ( not mentioning any names ) say they don't want.
Cordial ... isn't that a mixed drink? You want to be a whiskey and soda? Myself, I like to complain, so I want to be a whine cooler.
I said hello to the gray kitty who was waiting under my Tracker for me to bring breakfast again today. I keep their bowls in a large styrofoam container placed on its side so that rain doesn't get into the bowl. I stooped to place the fresh bowl under the styrofoam roof, and to take the old bowl, then when I stood up again, the gray cat was right there, almost touching my ankle. For a moment, I thought he was going to let me pet him but he backed away when I tried, so I left him alone to eat. He is becoming more comfortable with me but a big part of it, I think, is the black cat. If the black cat comes along, he will chase the gray one away, so as long as he believes that I am not going to kill him, the gray cat wants to get started on eating as early as he can.
Both of the black cats are still around because I saw them both at the same time today. Although they were once both the same size, one of them has more bulk than the other now, probably because he eats more now that he has quit being afraid of me. That one hangs around the back yard much of the time now, napping on our back landing, or following me around the yard when I'm outside. The gray one follows me around too, but at different times.
I took Ella for a walk outside today, in my arms, so I was the one doing the walking, not her. While walking along the tracks, she alerted on the bank on the other side of the track. The gray cat was there. I had noticed before that Ella does not hate the gray cat like she does the black one and most of the others. While she was still going outdoors on her own, I think it was the gray cat that I found her sitting alongside one time. I don't think she'd want him in the house but she doesn't hate him. She was interested in the gray cat but that was about it. She wasn't tense or growling. Later, it was Bubba's turn for a walk outdoors. The gray cat had come over to our yard and was at the food bowl when I went out with Bubba. Although both the gray cat and Bubba are males, Bubba was also interested but not upset, and soon lost interest in the other cat. Bubba is pretty much always calm and, although he plays rough, he never seems to get upset. Even when Ella makes him bleed, it's all good fun to Bubba. However, the only time I have ever heard Bubba growl was when I was carrying him around the yard and we came across another cat. It wasn't the gray one, though. He doesn't seem to mind the gray one.
The gray kitty (Smoke) is waiting under the plywood for me to back off just a bit so he can get the treats that I left him. This one isn't taken with my trail cameras. I am holding the camera. Earlier, I laid down on the lawn and pretended to sleep, to see if he would approach me. Instead, an ATVer traveling the tracks stopped to see if I was dead. When you get old, you can't even lie down on the grass anymore without someone thinking you're dead. Maybe I'll bring a lawn chair out one day.