Flip flop and fly

I heard bird noises on the roof of the Rolling Steel Tent. At first I thought they were up there pecking at bugs. Then I realized the sound was wings slapping, not beaks pecking. Flappity-floppity-flip-flippity-flap. It was happening several times a day, and the birds would fly away whenever I’d try to see what was going on.

Ah, but then I figured it out. There was a small, shallow patch of rain water on the solar panel, trapped by the slightly raised edge. The birds were using it to bathe. They could splash without getting muddy. It’s like the difference between a swimmin’ hole and a swimming pool. But without the chlorine.