I'm with you bebsie on the personal blog side of things; I started using blogger a few years ago so I could just express myself too: a rant & a rave here and there, sharing a few laughs with whoever might listen etc. Funnily enough I also met my girlfriend via the blog, and made quite a lot of new friends too, so that was a LOT of bonuses ;)
I still maintain that personal blog and started another WordPress blog on
green lifestyle information. Monetizing the blog is another plus but isn't the main goal, however discussion & promotion of green ideas is very satisfying.