If I'm hearing you correctly, it sounds like my Favicon problem (as described
above) is not unique, but is common to all IE7 users.

I guess I just never noticed it before, and was hoping that it was something
on my end that could be fixed.

FYI: I had to restore my "Favorites" Favicons once, and AM-DeadLink
(available at http://www.aignes.com/deadlink.htm ) did the trick nicely --
essentially a one-click "Check bookmarks and restore Favicons" operation. You
may want to try it if the problem with your Favicons arises again.