WOO HOO!
We have a better blogging system now!
I am still working to transfer the data from the old system to the new one...
Unfortunately, it does not look like the old blog data is transferrable... anyone who had an old blog should follow the steps below.
The request process for getting a blog is now much simpler!
Go to your profile (user settings) and select "group membership" and just request access to the blog author group!
Currently, it requires approval after you request... but at some point, it will all be completely automatic!