The striped kitty hasn't shown up tonight. I think she might be off having kittens somewhere. She hasn't yet looked especially rotund, but young cats sometimes have small litters that don't show. I'm pretty sure that she herself was born in that fairly isolated shed about a hundred feet beyond my back yard, sometime early last year. The gray cat, who is probably her kitten daddy (and might even be her daddy as well) has the food bowl all to himself. Last night he was in the yard most of the night again, as the weather has turned mild once more, and he's out there now, napping on one of his two favorite spots on the lawn. Funny how cats pick favorite spots. The whole lawn looks pretty much the same to me.
Anyway, another nice night is ahead, and the absence of a moon will make the stars brighter. I intend to go out to see Orion rise, if I remember and don't take an unintended nap. I hope Jane Austen will keep me awake.