Running -stable and using packages

[ai-danno]

Forgive my ignorance on this- I'm inexperienced on this portion of OBSD... I normally run -release and use pkg_add with sources from online mirrors.

I was wanting to run -stable (-release plus patches) but still be able to use the same mirror sources I've been using for packages (which obviously have been working fine for me on -release installations.) I've read the FAQ and even gone through the misc@ archives, but feel a little more confused now than when I started looking into this.

Are the mirrors that have the packages only intending those packages to be pkg_add'ed on a -release installation? Or can I 'upgrade' (or is 'update' a better term?) the installation to -stable and still use these same packages?

I read that since 4.2 the -stable packages themselves are not being maintained due to lack of resources. But I don't know if I'd be mixing things that are not intended to be mixed, or if I'm worrying over nothing.