Amongst the far-too-many things on my 'ToDo' list is 'sort out this blog.' It's high time it had some static pages, links, that sort of thing; I want a list of recent comments in the sidebar; and this layout is one of the off-the-shelf Movable Type designs - not very distinctive. However, the MT learning curve is somewhat steep and TypePad isn't enough of an excuse for that, frankly.
However, three things have helped recently. First is Blogstyles - though if you want to try a few styles on and see if they fit, it could get very pricey. Second, the MT-Plugins Directory. Looks like SimpleComments will handle the sidebar thing (and do other bits too). Third, this excellent explanation of how the DIV structure works in MT. I was planning on compiling something like this myself, since I was thoroughly appalled that it's not a standard part of the documentation. Thankfully, somebody beat me to it, and made a rather better job of it than I would have.
[Posted here for my own reference, as much as anything. Oh - that's another thing on my ToDo list - start a second blog (or maybe Wiki) just for things I want to note to myself. Maybe I should just stuff my Newton online and stop carrying it around...]
If you do find several blogstyles that you want to try out before purchasing, I might be able to arrange some larger screenshots or something for you :)