Yo, Betsteroids, have you noticed some of your friends and coworkers missing? It’s like they up and disappeared. Call ‘em up at work, and all you get is the seventh circle of voice mail heck. Drive by their shops, and the doors are locked tight. Even the bars seem weirdly empty, as if half the lower peninsula population has vanished. Alien abduction? The rapture? Hardly.

Guess again. That’s right: a lot of the local guys, and quite a few sharpshootin’ women, have gone moose hunting. Citizens, don’t be alarmed. That small arms fire you hear in the hills isn’t an insurgent attack, but just hunters trying to bag a half-ton of meat for their freezers. It’s perfectly safe as long as you don’t take long walks through the fireweed. Bad idea.

If you do the math — ammo, gas, catalog shopping spree at Cabela’s — buying a steer from one of the local ranchers might be a cheaper way to get organic, free-range protein. Hunting isn’t just about the meat. It’s about bonding with your brothers and sisters, about returning to the good old subsistence days. Well, hey, for some hunters, that meat could mean the difference between a winter of ramen and more interesting cuisine.

If tromping around in wet brush isn’t your idea of a good time, hey, check out some of these Best Bets:

BEST HELLO NEIGHBOR BET: Here on the Pacific Rim, our town has been reaching out across the international dateline to communities in Asia and Russia. This week, one of our oldest sister cities, Teshio, Japan, sends a delegation to reaffirm bonds of friendship. A reception is at 6 p.m. Friday at Land’s End Resort.

BEST JUST AROUND THE POINT BET: Yeah, you could take a 12-day slog from Seward to Homer, or you could take the easy route and watch “Summer Light: Enjoy the Detour,” a documentary video about such a trip taken by Ruth and Frederick Dickerson, Micha Sloth and Matt Byrd. The event is at 7 p.m. Friday at Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center.

BEST SUPPORT YOUR SISTERS BET: Or daughters and mothers — women, that is. The 11th Annual Run for Women starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Mariner Park gazebo on the Homer Spit. The race raises funds for local breast cancer programs.

BEST SUPPORT FAMILIES BET: South Peninsula Women’s Services has changed its name to South Peninsula Haven House to reflect its mission of providing a safe place for families in crisis. From 2-6 p.m. Saturday some great musical groups present “Sirens of Song” at the Beluga Lake Lodge. Proceeds benefit Haven House, of course.

BEST ROPE THEM GUMBIES BET: There will be some ropin’ and scramblin’ at the big rodeo there on the Spit — well, the Seafair Boating Safety Rodeo. If you think wrasslin’ a calf is hard, try putting on a gumby suit in high seas. That and other safety events run noon-4 p.m. at the Homer Marine Terminal Saturday.

BEST SOMBER BET: We’ve had a lot of grief in Homer these past few weeks. For every large, public tragedy, there are dozens of smaller, private losses. If you want to remember a loved one, join Hospice of Homer’s annual Remembrance Circle from 7-8:30 p.m. Aug. 30 at WKFL Park.