I don't find anything in ME resources at Mickey$oft that seems to relate to this. There is an old KB article applicable to Win95, Win98, and WinNT4 that suggests corruption of the icon cache.

The problem specifically refered to was related to using the "Tweak UI" utility (a non-Mickey utility), which shouldn't be on your machine.

Another article specific to WinXP and Win2K indicates that the icon cache can be mangled attempted "using a web page that engages Active Desktop" for your wallpaper. The article doesn't make reference to ME, but the reported behaviour is similar.

The suggested fix is to force a rebuild of the icon cache:
Start-Settings-Control Panel-Display-Appearance Tab.
Depending on Win version, you may be able to select "icon" there, or you may need to go to "Advanced" and open the roller to select icon.
Move the icon size roller up (or down) one step, then move it back. When you "Apply" the change, it should "rebuild" the icon cache.

Stilly River Sage reported a somewhat similar sounding problem in Tech: MS Servicepak 3 killed desktop shortcuts. His was related to installation of a "new feature" with a Service Pack installation, and the "fix" he found is in his last post.

His fix was specific to Win2K, so it might not apply to ME, but the KB article Stilly found might be of help to your GEEK (?) if he doesn't have his own immediate fix. (That is, if you've updated your Windows – although I can't find a similar "feature" in any ME.) It's a geek article, so may not have much meaning to real people.

HOW TO: Use the Set Program Access and Defaults Feature in Windows 2000 Service Pack 3, Knowledge Base article 327931.

When faced with problems, it's probably best to use "built-in" tools first, so for future reference (or after GEEK gets you back up) you might want to take a look at: Available Troubleshooters in Windows Millennium Edition, (26 separate utilities)
"To access the troubleshooters in Windows Me Help, click Start, click Help, type troubleshooter in the Search box, and then click Go."

"Trust the guy that has his hands on your equipment. He's got the best chance of making you happy again."

John