[redbeerman]

Good for you Jonathan!  I still play on occasion, but this time of year is tough.  Nice to hang on the deck or front porch with whatever stringed instrument fancies the moment though.

[S. cerevisiae]

The whole pentatonic scale is kind of weird, it just seems like each note really makes sense in relation to each other.

There are actually two pentatonic scales.  The pentatonic scale is just the diatonic scale without two notes.  The major pentatonic scale is missing scale degrees 4 and 7 from the major diatonic scale (a.k.a Ionian mode).  The minor pentatonic scale is missing scale degrees 2 and 6 from the minor diatonic scale (a.k.a. Aeolian mode).   Put into plain English, the major pentatonic scale is missing Fa and Ti from Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti.  The minor pentatonic scale appears in rock music much more frequently than the major pentatonic scale.  The minor pentatonic is just the major pentatonic starting on the 6th scale degree (i.e., La is the root note for the minor pentatonic scale).

Major Diatonic (seven note scale)

Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti

Minor Diatonic (seven note scale)

La Ti Do Re Mi Fa So

Major Pentatonic (five note scale)

Do Re Mi So La

Minor Pentatonic  (five note scale)

La Do Re Mi So

Music is my oldest hobby.  Like Denny, I have too much gear that I play too infrequently.