On top of that, the weather has been so fantabulously sunny, just getting outside and enjoying that warm stuff is entertainment enough. Now you know what it's like to live in the tropics. Down in the south where they get weather like this about as often as Dave Letterman apologizes to Gov. Sarah Palin, sunshine makes social planning easy. Monday night: watch the sunset. Tuesday: read on beach, don't forget sunscreen. Tuesday night: watch the sunset. You know the drill.

Consider this a transforming moment in Homer's cultural history. Combine a great summer with lots of amazing events, and all of a sudden we're not a little burg where if you put on a play or hold a concert you can expect the whole town to come because there's nothing else to do. That's life on the lower Kenai Peninsula, Betsteroids. You now have to choose.

Fortunately, although the odds are good for something to do, the events aren't that odd -- well, the Betster isn't too sure about that Hedwig thing. So plot your life and hit the streets with some of these Best Bets:

BEST ONE LAST TIME BET: Pier One Theater puts on such amazing stuff, sometimes it gets overlooked. They're just knocking them dead out there in the little theater on the Spit. The season has only begun, but don't miss "That Darn Plot!" as it finishes out its run this weekend, with shows at 7:30 p.m. today and 8:15 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are on sale at Etude Studio and the Homer Bookstore.

BEST CELEBRITY CRUISE BET: Suppose on the way to play in Vegas, you got a ride on Elvis' bus and chatted with him as you ate peanut-butter-and-banana sandwiches. Well, you can do this. OK, not with Elvis, but with big-name amazing musical talents like Mary LaMond and Wendy Mac- Isaac, two of Cape Breton's finest musicians. Board the M/V Tustumena today at 11:55 a.m. as the headliners for the Seldovia Summer Solstice Music Festival sail to Seldovia. The festival continues Friday and Saturday, with concerts and workshops.

BEST BIG WIG BET: If you thought Atz Lee Kilcher looked weird in his mullet, wait until you see him in a bouffant wig. Atz Lee plays Hedwig in "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," the musical about gender identification and stuff like that. Also, director Kathleen Gustafson says, the music just really rocks. "Hedwig" opens in a gala performance at 8 p.m. Friday at the Best Western Bidarka Inn. Tickets are $50. The show also plays at 8 p.m. Sunday for a $15 admission.

BEST ART IN THE PARK BET: It's become an annual tradition: encourage artists to create amazing art and let it take on the weather. That's the idea behind Facing the Elements, the Pratt Museum's summer show. See what has been created with an opening reception from 5-7 p.m. Friday on the forest trail behind the museum.

BEST FURRY FRIENDS BET: Our boss here says she has the cutest and smartest dog in the world, and who are we to argue with her? Every dog's a winner though when it's well loved. Show off your canine companions for Homer's annual celebration of pets with Strutt Your Mutt on Saturday. Registration starts at 11:15 a.m. and the walk begins at noon. There are games and contests following.

Homer's Best Bets