I was browsing Lovelyish during a moment of extreme boredom, when I saw this post. It was basically explaining how Lovelyish is on Facebook and Twitter. To try and push the image that they are "popular," they added a picture from Mean Girls (the movie). I just found this so funny, because the Lovelyish community really is the "mean girls" of xanga.

There are some posts that I can understand and even respect. However, these are far and few between. The majority of the posts are simply a bunch of girls gathering together to harp on a current celebrity's fashion choice and whether it was a "fail" or not. I get that critiquing celebrity fashion is a hobby for many people, but a line has to be drawn. For example, the Kelly Clarkson Halloween Costume post was a little ridiculous. The girls that were commenting and calling it a "fail" were saying ridiculous things like "it's not very flattering." Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot that all of the girls have to dress like complete sluts for Halloween. Seriously, where is the sense of humor? I highly doubt Kelly picked out that costume because she thought it was fashionable.

Another thing that bothers me is how original these wanna be fashionistas try to be, but in reality there are two types of groups in the community. There are the girls that jump on any fashion bandwagon and love whatever celebrities wear, then there are the girls that hate everything that is trendy or popular. The latter is the most irritating because they tend to think they are superior for not liking something that is popular. They will harp on anything and everything by using phrases like "I'm so over this trend."

I suppose my real irritation with the Lovelyish community comes from the people that comment and not the content producers. Usually their comments are snobby and don't do much to promote discussion. "I don't like this," "this is sooo tacky," and "Gross!" are the most popular types of comments I see, aside from the simple "Pretty" or "Love it!" comments. The comment section of Lovelyish just seems to be a collection of trash talk and judgments. It's probably the most hate-filled section of Xanga, aside from the main site.

Here are some comments from various Lovelyish posts (names withheld for obvious reasons):

• "Attention whore. Dislike."
• "Fail. She gets on my nerves and these all are just boring."
• "FAILLLLL."
• "if "kinda hideous" is a synonym for "makes me want to projectile vomit" I agree."
• "If i säw you on the Road id be Lik ewww total hipster.."
• "bleh. hate her."
• "White trash mullet.That's all I have to say."

• "oh my god. such an epic fail i mean, let's put it this way, before i clicked on the link, i couldn't have EVER imagined a fail so big."

• "Hahaha creative way of hiding fat."
• "Fail - she looks retarded."

These girls SERIOUSLY need to stop harping on everyone else and look at themselves in the mirror, because I highly doubt that they are perfect.

Not to mention the fact that (as TheCheshireGrins and I have noticed) the majority of their content seems to be extremely similar to the posts on Perez Hilton's website. This may be a coincidence, it may not be. Some girls may be "inspired" by his posts, but what they write is more often than not the same thing he wrote, just in different words. I thought blogs were supposed to inspire creativity and to encourage original writing? Maybe I was wrong.

At first, when the -ish sites began popping up, I was against the separation of the Xanga community. Now, I could not be more grateful. Keep the snotty girls and their "fashionista" attitudes far away from me.

What do you think of Lovelyish?

Apparently I need to add a little disclaimer here explaining that what's about to follow is, obviously, sarcasm. I can't believe people take this seriously. Sigh.

Alright, so you joined up on the site to blog about your thoughts and feelings, only to find that you crave something more. You see the top blogs, the bunches of comments, the minis and props being given out to people that have gathered enough attention. You want a piece of that action, but you just don't know how to accomplish it.

Well lucky for you, I'm here to help. After years of being on the site and observing the population interact, I have concocted a fool proof way to get your name out there and your entries onto the top blogs. Maybe even the featured section!

1. It's All About Friends and Subscribers- Everyone knows that the friend and subscription feature is not simply to just have easier access to blogs you enjoy... it's a way to insure more views on your sites! Get your name out there and make some friends. Don't discriminate, send friend requests out to everyone on the site: old people, young people, anorexics with thinspo sites, people that write in foreign languages, and even people that haven't posted anything. Get your friend and subscription count into the thousands and your traffic will certainly increase!

2. Repeat After Me: "I Disagree!"- Okay, you have your countless friends and subscriptions. What to do with all these people and their blogs conveying different viewpoints? Disagree with them. Disagree with ALL OF THEM. No matter what your personal view is, start some ridiculous counter argument against whatever people are blogging about these days and NEVER BACK DOWN. Find holes in their arguments, no matter how small, and call them out on it. Comment your arguments on their blogs or create counter blog entries. Whatever you do, make sure it is scandalous and ridiculous. You will get tons of feedback on your outrageous entries, it doesn't matter if it is good or bad. All that matters is that you get those precious comments!

3. Stir The Pot- Drama is inevitable on a public site. People are constantly arguing and whining about this or that. If you are not involved in this drama, get involved! This way you interact with lots of people and your name becomes a recognized one on the site! Pick a side and get in the fight. Start rumors about the other person. Just make sure that whenever a peaceful agreement is about to be made, you blow it up by saying you heard something terrible about one of the parties. Example: "I know you guys are trying to resolve things, but Bob, I think you should know that Larry said he wants to eat your firstborn."

4. Don't Be Afraid Of Personal Attacks- So now your name is out there and people are beginning to come to your blog more often. Now is the perfect time to pull out one of the easiest stunts to get attention. Start a feud with another xangan. This is different then step number two, because instead of simply refuting a persons belief, you are making a personal attack on the person behind the entry. Make sure it is a fairly well known xangan as well, because there are always haters of popular xangans. Make a personal attack and those haters will flock to your side, throwing you props, recs, and comments that make you soar to the top. Example: "I hate to be the ones to break this to you, but Rissa is a racist! She also hates babies, condones rape, and will slaughter you in your sleep! She also has four different usernames on Xanga that she will use to harass you! She must be stopped!"

5. Remember The Mantra: It's MY Opinion- People will no doubt try to get you to stop from reaching your goal. They will say ridiculous things like "you're wrong" and "stop saying stuff about me, I never bothered you!" There is only one surefire way to counter these statements. "I'm just stating my opinion." You can also say "This is a public site, don't like it? Don't read!" These statements will leave everyone speechless because the logic is obviously irrefutable. You are smart, talented, and better than everyone else, so don't you ever back down. Arm yourself with this mantra and you will be untouchable! Example: "I don't care that I never spoke to your or read your entries before; it's my opinion that you rape chickens and there's nothing you can do about it because I'm writing this on my site. Don't like it? Don't read it!"

Now, this isn't the only way of getting your name out there in the xanga world. You could get acknowledged for writing good, thought provoking entries that start discussion among the community. But that's just too much work, now isn't it?

Do you have any tips for achieving xanga fame?