Well I have pretty much got my blog into decent shape and I am very happy with how it has turned out.
For the curious I am using Wordpress with the Atahualpa theme, and I can heartily recommend this combination. It is very approachable and yet extremely flexible, so I have been able to get a look and feel that I am happy with really quickly.
I should also mention that the picture at the top of the site came from the fantastic stock.xchng site which provides some great quality free stock photographs.
Finally I have it all running on bluehost who provide good value hosting.