According to the official Web site, on July 23, employees are encouraged to “join forces with your brethren against a common enemy. Satanic supervisors, mean managers, slimy CEOs: They all deserve to be on the receiving end of a swift kick in the butt. And now, Insult Your Boss Day (IYBD) provides the opportunity to do just that.”

At 3 p.m., “all workers should inslut their bosses simultaneously, followed by a communal drink at the nearest bar.”

The Web site includes advice from Lady Arabella Snark, Honorary Chair of IYBD 2008.

The Lady answers questions online from workers interested in insulting their bosses. An example: “‘Insult my boss! What if I get fired?’ you might ask. Insults leave no mark—at least none visible to the Division of Unemployment, who will be paying your rent for the next six months while you drink Mai Tais in your underwear and catch up on One Life to Live. Enjoy!”

Nearly 140 people attended the annual World Santa Claus Congress at a park north of Copenhagen. Most attendees were from Scandinavia, but they came from all over the world including Russia, Japan and the United States.

These jobs aren’t for couch potatoes. One of the activities was an obstacle course where the Kris Kringles had to race past a sleigh and up a small hill built of ice before climbing down a fake chimney, according to wire service reports.

They also participated in the somewhat less strenuous “yula-hoop” twirl.

Attendees could also participate in tongue-in-cheek seminars about the 21st century challenges facing their vocation, such as, “How do we get into people’s homes when there are no chmineys on the houses to climb down?”

The Santa Congress has grown from just a local event when it was first held in 1957.

The good news: The judges get to do away with their traditional wigs. The bad news: The new robes are color-coded, which had led at least one critic to liken them to the uniforms from the sci-fi series Star Trek.

The judges on the Appeal Court and High Court will start wearing the new robes in October which include color bands to identify seniority.

The most senior judges get gold bands; High Court judges get red ones.

British newspaper The Guardian deputy fashion editor Hadley Freeman said the new outfit would make the wearer look like an “evil pastor” or a “cut-price Cruella de Vil” from the Disney movie 101 Dalmatians.

To make the point about how the robes look like Star Trek uniforms, the newspaper juxtaposed a picture of a judge wearing one of the new robes and a snapshot of actor Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

The fashion editor quipped, “Instead of appearing imperious, the lord chief justice, Lord Phillips, now just looks like the man who sells you tickets for the Star Trek Experience … in Las Vegas.”

The Judicial Communications Office said the new robes would cut costs by reducing the number of robes certain judges had to wear.

Instead, they got a phone number for women looking for sex.

The number for the job hotline was listed incorrectly on the state Web site, as well as in the Verizon Yellow Pages and other Web sites.

State officials say they’re aware of the problem (we’re guessing it didn’t take them long to find out), and they’re working to correct it.

As an HRB  public service, the correct number for Maryland Job Services is 410-767-2148.

Tim Pochron’s squad car was wrecked in a crash just 29 minutes into his first day on the job. He’s an officer in Hobart, IN.

Pochron wasn’t in his car at the time. Another driver hit his new squad car as well as a tree.

The driver tested positive for drugs, was arrested and taken to a hospital.

Pochron was filling out paperwork on his first day when the accident happened.

The force of the crash bent the rear axle of the squad car. The vehicle can be repaired.

Deputy Police Chief Jeff White says Pochron “was just heartbroken” about the accident.

Duncan’s daily work uniform as a master carpenter is a man-bikini (others would refer to what he’s wearing by the brand name Speedo).

In at all started in 1993 when he wore a man-bikini while competing in a mountain bike race. Someone yelled, “Bikini Man.” Duncan says he felt an electric rush (we hope it just wasn’t that his suit was too tight).

Since then, according to an article in the San Antonio Express-News, Duncan has increasingly taken the bikini public.

Duncan rarely gets complaints about working in just the skimpy bathing suit. He says on one occasion, the police were called about a half dozen times to one site where he was working, but they never arrested him.

One client quoted in the newspaper article says he got comments from neighbors about Duncan, but his carpentry work is worth it. “You definitely have to warn your wife before he comes over,” the client said.

And Duncan says he’s picked up business because of the bikini.

The fabric-challenged swimsuit also plays a part in Duncan’s social life. He says at his favorite nightspots, women usually approach him.

Interestingly, Duncan does draw the line at total nudity. He says one night when a group of friends went skinny dipping, he couldn’t do it.

Despite this — and the June 25 call was recorded — the dispatcher was still employed by the City of Dallas as of a July 16 according to a report from the Fox TV station in Dallas.

Cristobal Jaimes was wanted by police who believe he shot and killed another man.

Three days later, Jaimes called 911 to turn himself in.

“To turn yourself in, you gotta go to the … jail,” the dispatcher is heard saying.

“How am I gonna do that?” Jaimes responded.

“You’ll have to take a car, bus or whatever, but they won’t come pick you up. You just gotta turn yourself in,” the dispatcher replied. The dispatcher never asked Jaimes why he was wanted.

A short time later, Jaimes called 911 again and got a different dispatcher — and a much different result.

The dispatcher asked what the warrant on Jaimes was for. He replied for shooting someone. At that point, the dispatcher called for a squad car to pick Jaimes up immediately.

A spokesman with Dallas Fire-Rescue said an investigation is underway into what transpired during the first phone call.

NASA needs urine — about 8 gallons a day, even on weekends.

It’s for the construction of the next space capsule, Orion, that would eventually take astronauts to the moon for visits of up to six months.

NASA’s head of life support systems for Orion, John Lewis, says they need to solve the issue of how to get rid of stored urine.

The challenge is keeping the waste disposal system clear because of the solids suspended in urine. Those solids can clog a venting system.

NASA has a proud tradition of collecting urine from its employees to design better space toilets because, “you can’t make fake urine,” according to Lewis.

The memo seeking daily urine contributions from July 21 to 31 from about 30 people wasn’t meant to go public. If you’re interested, you can read the text of the memo at Nasawatch.com.

That’s what has happened in Osaka, Japan, when Japan Post told letter carrier Noboru Nakamura to shave off his moustache.

Nakamura has had the ’stache since 1990. The conflict started after Japan Post introduced new grooming regulations in 2004.

“I have taken care to keep my moustache neat and I don’t think I make my customers feel uncomfortable,” Nakamura told a Japanese newspaper.

The bar association in Osaka said the order against Nakamura violated his human rights. Lawyers are rallying behind the letter carrier.

Many Japanese look down upon facial hair growth, but moustaches and beards have recently become much more fashionable.

Grampian Fire and Rescue dismissed Kevin Ogilvie on the grounds he posed a safety risk.

Now, the Fire Brigades Union has scheduled a strike vote for later in the summer over the matter.

The union says Ogilvie should have been reassigned instead of fired. It’s believed Ogilvie is the first Scottish fireman fired for being overweight.

Grampian Fire Assistant Chief Peter Murray said the service should not create a new job for a firefighter who was unfit for the job.

“The standards are pretty clear. We’ve got gyms in every one of our stations,” Murray said.

The assistant chief went on to say, ”The fitness policy is designed to protect the organization and the individual himself.”

A statement from Grampian Fire says it was forced to act after a “very long and arduous process of … consideration.”