Our next panel video from Intervention 2011 is: Sluggy Freelance and the Dimension of Nuts

Description: After over fourteen years of daily webcomic content, people must wonder just how crazy Pete Abrams actually is. You can ask Pete questions, and watch him skillfully (?) dodge the point. Pete is notorious for drawing and sketching his way through panels, but at this one, he’ll have to actually say something!

Panelist: Pete Abrams

On Friday, September 16, the Lincoln Room at Intervention hosted nothing more than a few dry-erase markers and blank whiteboards.  It had all of the excitement and depth of “Dragonball Z” filler.

By Sunday, however, drastic changes could be seen.

Intervention’s Art Gallery was an empty room that beckoned professional, amateur, and even sucky artists to unleash their creativity through the magic of Staples merchandise.  As people found the room, wall space slowly but surely disappeared, replaced with artwork and website plugs that surrounded any and all patrons who dared visit.

Check out the end result of a room that started out extremely bare.  These pictures were taken shortly before noon on Sunday; be sure to click on each image so you may view the full scope of what Intervention attendees, guests, and even staff created.  While it may be lost to the eraser as early as tomorrow (which is a shame, as I feel that future conferences that gather in the room would be greatly enhanced), it will live on forever on the Intarwebz.

When most people think of the “Super Mario Bros.” franchise, what comes to mind is a series of video games beginning with crude, 8-bit graphics that grew into the 3-dimensional imagery enjoyed in the later consoles.  Several keywords can be linked to the adventures of the Italian plumber who first burst onto the scene as Donkey Kong’s nemesis in the early 1980s: “pipe,” “Luigi,” “whistle,” and even “tennis” (yay Virtual Boy).

“Bellydancing,” however, never quite made that list.

On Sunday, that all changed.

Following their Saturday performance “Guile’s Theme Goes with Bellydance: An Internet Meme Tribute,” the Antipode bellydance troupe continued with their Sunday offering “Super Mario Belly Dance World.”  An audience of many ages gathered in the Intervention Performance Room to watch as the dancers wove a story through comedic dialogue and, of course, bellydancing.  The expertly-crafted choreography was set to pieces from several entries in the “Super Mario” line.  Fans recognized the MIDI-tastic water world music from “Super Mario Bros.” as well as captivating remixes of the Ghost House level music from “Super Mario World.”

In addition to blessing the lengthy “Super Mario Bros.” keyword list with “bellydancing,” it is safe to say that the Antipode troupe created a successful live-action rendition of everyone’s favorite mustachioed Brooklynite.  They succeeded thoroughly where Captain Lou Albano and Bob Hoskins (miserably) failed in their respective attempts to bring the brothers Mario to IRL adventures.

DISCLAIMER: In no way am I or Intervention itself suggesting that Bob Hoskins take up bellydancing.  No one wants to see that.

Be sure to visit the Intervention Video Game Room! Tonight at midnight, hardcore Halo players will have the opportunity to display their skills during the Halo tournament.

The other offerings in the Video Game Room will be open until midnight and from 8AM until noon tomorrow. Be sure to visit, as there is a LOT being offered. A Rock Band setup projects the game onto one wall, slightly illuminating the numerous consoles filling the rest of the room. Whether your system of choice is a PC, Wii, or even the old 8-bit Nintendo, your thirst for gaming will indeed be quenched.

One of its most alluring aspects, however, is the presence of an actual Commodore 64 console (humorously hooked up to a flatscreen monitor, the gap between home gamings’ 1970s infancy and present day bridged by a wire). So classic is the “Pac-Man” game that the ghosts are without full eyeballs!

All of us are enjoying Intervention this weekend (obviously). However, how can we be sure that our fun here will not affect our employers, our non-understanding family members, and others during our stay? How can we be certain that a major purchase in the Dealers’ Room won’t leave us strapped for cash come Monday when we need food or cell phone bill payment?

Early Saturday morning at Intervention, three of the web’s best minds came together to answer such questions.

Barb Fischer (left) and Chris Impink (center) write and draw, respectively, Sledgebunny; joining them was conscrewDOTcom creator Kara Dennison (right). The three joined forces to discuss life within and outside of their respective geekdoms.

When they aren’t busy fascinating the Intarwebz with their respective works, Barb, Chris and Kara spend the majority of their time engrossed in their “real” jobs: librarian and mother, graphic designer and online features editor, respectively. Balancing online personas with the standard 9-5 work environment translates to long nights and sacrifices for each.

“I use a timer and lists to organize everything,” Barb says. “If your geeky life begins to interfere with your work or social life, just take a break from it.” In other words, the geek life is built to accommodate such breaks, whereas professional and personal lives may not be so flexible.

Other tips that were offered:

• An understanding boss/employer will always make the balance easier.  As long as your professional duties are taken care of at the office first and foremost, an easygoing boss will not only allow you to hone your geek craft, but may also begin to take an interest.
• Separate responsibilities into certain times of the day.  Barb, for example, reserves mornings and evenings for her young son, opting to focus on her duties to Sledgebunny after he has gone to bed for the night.
• When it comes to a social life, set aside days to spend time with your family and friends.  “There are certain nights each week that I tell people not to even bother calling me,” Kara says.  “Also, each Sunday, I try to go out to dinner with my grandparents, aunt, and uncle.”

Be sure to visit Barb Fischer, Chris Impink, and Kara Dennison at their tables in the Intervention Dealers’ Room and check the <a href=”http://interventioncon.com/programming/programming-schedule-2011/”>programming schedule</a> for additional panels of theirs throughout Saturday and Sunday.