QUOTE(ofels @ Jan 8 2007, 09:25 PM)
I suspect something went extremely wrong with your installation and though I hate this advice because it reminds me of Windows try reinstalling with a fresh image.
I guess that is what I will have to do eventually. I'd just hate to have it happen again. And it nearly did!

This is right after installation of a completely fresh copy (altboot loop image) and rebooting once. Whether or not the Calendar and Today icons show up after reboot seems to be completely erratic and only dependant on the phase of the moon or the direction of the wind

Pressing "Reload Icons" in the Settings tab does not change this. I am afraid this might be early signs of the same problem reappearing.
I did the reinstallation once more. And again, the problem would occur on some reboots but not all. I am confused.