Looks good. Try adding opposing gradients on the main box, something lite. I think it would look really nice. G'luck!
Agree with poster above, the navigation menu above the picture and below it should be a different color, too much black in that area...
Great tips so far. As for my layout, I feel it is a bit..boring, and too plain. Can anybody recommend any other layouts/themes?
The layout does look a bit dull, redesign it. I would suggest making the titles of the posts bigger... good luck!