Why did you choose your icon?

[FinnJames]

I've often wondered why the people who post here chose the icon that accompanies their posts. That might be a topic for us to share.

To start things off, my current icon here is a photo of a tsasouna (chapel?) in Muhos, a village near where I live, that was recently torn down. The sky in the photo seems to me to be quite dramatic. Unfortunately, I didn't take the picture.

 

[biro]

I chose mine from the news story about a security robot at a building in the U.S. For some reason, the robot wandered away, and down the steps, into a pond in front of the building. Twitter users called it a suicidal robot.

 

[Asteriktos]

Someone has to call me back to the narrow path each day, might as well be St. Jonah

 

[Orthodox_Slav]

i just like this icon of Jesus Christ

 

[Lepanto]

Mine shows the view from a mountain in the Alps which I climbed.
Being there was one of the greatest experiences I ever had.

 

[Briven]

I like the painting a lot, plus, it's a painted version of a print during
St. Ambrose's time.

 

[hecma925]

Our omnipotent Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in which not even the tortures of the Cross, Death, and Hades could not hold Him back.

 

[Alpo]

It's my home parish.

 

[Asteriktos]

Our omnipotent Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in which not even the tortures of the Cross, Death, and Hades could not hold Him back.

Like 450 on a barbell, the double negative in this sentence is beyond my capabilities to handle. What is the meaning?

 

[Volnutt]

The Einstein Cross. There are actually only two galaxies in the image, the other three are an illusion. The closer one to us is just in such an exact relative position that its gravity is able to bend and split the image of the farther one into four copies arranged around it like so.

Most of the other times this happens in nature it forms an Einstein-Cwolson Ring like this one,

Which is cool in itself, but the fact that these two galaxies coincidentally form a cross was just too interesting for me to pass up. Also, the nature of illusions fascinates me in general, since objectively it's not real but for us the observers it clearly is in a sense. Maybe I can't help but compare it to the visions of a Saint, as a sort of "God-induced useful hallucination." I don't know.


So, I guess in addition to finding it really beautiful, I also find it spiritually significant (without knowing precisely why or even if I really should) ???...

 

[Arachne]

Ballet summarises well my idea of discipline, and pointe shoes are my martyrdom of choice.

 

[hecma925]

Our omnipotent Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in which not even the tortures of the Cross, Death, and Hades could not hold Him back.

Like 450 on a barbell, the double negative in this sentence is beyond my capabilities to handle. What is the meaning?

Just a little extra apophatic theology, my friend.

 

[Dominika]

I think my current avatar is quite easy-read (nationality, Orthodoxy, being a moderator).

My previous ones are some cartoon charaters (as I love them plus they indicate that I take many things with pinch of salt), Arabic Christian calligraphy (again, obvious reasons), Serbian flag with cross (I was given such one by my Serbian grandma) and, the first, was the bell tower of my parish).

 

[Volnutt]

I think my current avatar is quite easy-read (nationality, Orthodoxy, being a moderator).

My previous ones are some cartoon charaters (as I love them plus they indicate that I take many things with pinch of salt), Arabic Christian calligraphy (again, obvious reasons), Serbian flag with cross (I was given such one by my Serbian grandma) and, the first, was the bell tower of my parish).

You've got a good memory (or at least more constancy than I do). I don't think I could remember most of my avatars.

They've almost all been art from video games, just because I love a certain kind of old school Nintendo-y aesthetic (my username is from the game Mega Man Legends, actually). It also ties into my love of science fiction (as my current avatar does, too).

 

[Briven]

Does anyone else occasionally explore switching icons but just end up going back to the old one?

 

[hecma925]

I don't remember my previous avatars and I've only had 3 or 4.  I think.

 

[Ainnir]

Midsummer's Eve was just what I liked best from what the site offered.  But it's a painting I've always liked, and I used to love fairies, so it was coincidentally fitting.

The current quote is part of an image I ran across and saved, and I need the quote's sentiment, so there it is. 

 

[Volnutt]

Does anyone else occasionally explore switching icons but just end up going back to the old one?

Definitely. Mostly because the forum software makes it too small for my liking and my minimal image manipulation skills just produce something ugly.

 

[Volnutt]

Midsummer's Eve was just what I liked best from what the site offered.  But it's a painting I've always liked, and I used to love fairies, so it was coincidentally fitting.

The current quote is part of an image I ran across and saved, and I need the quote's sentiment, so there it is. 

USED TO? 

 

[Ainnir]

Midsummer's Eve was just what I liked best from what the site offered.  But it's a painting I've always liked, and I used to love fairies, so it was coincidentally fitting.

The current quote is part of an image I ran across and saved, and I need the quote's sentiment, so there it is. 

USED TO? 

Yes, used to.  How traitorous of me.  ;D  I still like them; they're just not in the "stuff I love" category anymore.

 

[Volnutt]

Well, I'm probably far more towards the "faeries as Gothic horror villains" than I am the cute posh version, anyway.

 

[Justin Kolodziej]

St. John Koukouzelis was a psalti and he's not St. Romanos the Melodist. Plus once he actually helped me out at work.

Not so much with my singing though -- if I wanted something that's helped with that I would have to put in a Hammerfall album cover  ;D

The other I remember is I MSPainted Boris Badenov's face into a picture of the non-metropolitan of Denver Gregory of the GOCA, and called him Met. Odoriferos of the Pottsylvanian Orthodox Church Outside Pottsylvania In Pottsylvania In Exile. But I think the PNG is lost now.

 

[mcarmichael]

So far, I think I like my icon the best. It is a picture of Madrid.

 

[RaphaCam]

It's a cute icon. I love Ss. Raphael the Archangel (my patron saint) and Tobit and I wish I could stabilish a closer relationship to them through prayer.

 

[RaphaCam]

I don't remember my previous avatars and I've only had 3 or 4.  I think.

You once had an old white guy in a hat, I thought that was you, but you later described yourself as brown and chubby. Or maybe you were brown and chubby in the weird dream I had involving you.

 

[Arachne]

Ballet summarises well my idea of discipline, and pointe shoes are my martyrdom of choice.

Halloween season takes precedence, though.

 

[hecma925]

I don't remember my previous avatars and I've only had 3 or 4.  I think.

You once had an old white guy in a hat, I thought that was you, but you later described yourself as brown and chubby. Or maybe you were brown and chubby in the weird dream I had involving you.

Pray tell, what hapoened in said dream?

 

[WPM]

I got mine blessed by the church and saying prayers to keep blessing it.

 

[Opus118]

The Einstein Cross. There are actually only two galaxies in the image, the other three are an illusion. The closer one to us is just in such an exact relative position that its gravity is able to bend and split the image of the farther one into four copies arranged around it like so.

Most of the other times this happens in nature it forms an Einstein-Cwolson Ring like this one,

Which is cool in itself, but the fact that these two galaxies coincidentally form a cross was just too interesting for me to pass up. Also, the nature of illusions fascinates me in general, since objectively it's not real but for us the observers it clearly is in a sense. Maybe I can't help but compare it to the visions of a Saint, as a sort of "God-induced useful hallucination." I don't know.


So, I guess in addition to finding it really beautiful, I also find it spiritually significant (without knowing precisely why or even if I really should) ??? ...

I could have sworn your avatar was chasing the Starship Enterprise in one episode.

 

[RaphaCam]

I don't remember my previous avatars and I've only had 3 or 4.  I think.

You once had an old white guy in a hat, I thought that was you, but you later described yourself as brown and chubby. Or maybe you were brown and chubby in the weird dream I had involving you.

Pray tell, what hapoened in said dream?

I did tell you, I don't remember any details, but we were at a friend's house and you refused to speak Spanish to me. You were very angry overall, and I think you hit someone.

 

[hecma925]

I don't remember my previous avatars and I've only had 3 or 4.  I think.

You once had an old white guy in a hat, I thought that was you, but you later described yourself as brown and chubby. Or maybe you were brown and chubby in the weird dream I had involving you.

Pray tell, what hapoened in said dream?

I did tell you, I don't remember any details, but we were at a friend's house and you refused to speak Spanish to me. You were very angry overall, and I think you hit someone.

Ah, lol, I remember.  Such violence!

 

[Dominika]

I got mine blessed by the church and saying prayers to keep blessing it.

That title of the thread is confusing; when I saw that firstly, frankly speaking, I also thought about 'normal' icon. But the op means icon as profile picture (avatar) on the oc.net.

 

[Iconodule]

I don't remember my previous avatars and I've only had 3 or 4.  I think.

You once had an old white guy in a hat, I thought that was you, but you later described yourself as brown and chubby. Or maybe you were brown and chubby in the weird dream I had involving you.

Pray tell, what hapoened in said dream?

I did tell you, I don't remember any details, but we were at a friend's house and you refused to speak Spanish to me. You were very angry overall, and I think you hit someone.

Saints and sinners all agree, Spanish is a loving tongue... but she never spoke Spanish to me.

 

[Iconodule]

My avatars tend not to have much thought go into them. My animated Forbidden Planet avatar was one exception. Right now I have a painting by the Ming emperor Xuande because it looks nice and I like monkeys.

 

[Volnutt]

The Einstein Cross. There are actually only two galaxies in the image, the other three are an illusion. The closer one to us is just in such an exact relative position that its gravity is able to bend and split the image of the farther one into four copies arranged around it like so.

Most of the other times this happens in nature it forms an Einstein-Cwolson Ring like this one,

Which is cool in itself, but the fact that these two galaxies coincidentally form a cross was just too interesting for me to pass up. Also, the nature of illusions fascinates me in general, since objectively it's not real but for us the observers it clearly is in a sense. Maybe I can't help but compare it to the visions of a Saint, as a sort of "God-induced useful hallucination." I don't know.


So, I guess in addition to finding it really beautiful, I also find it spiritually significant (without knowing precisely why or even if I really should) ??? ...

I could have sworn your avatar was chasing the Starship Enterprise in one episode.

Thinking of the Crystalline Entity?

There's probably been a couple of other things over the years that look a bit like Einstein's Cross, too.

 

[Opus118]

The Einstein Cross. There are actually only two galaxies in the image, the other three are an illusion. The closer one to us is just in such an exact relative position that its gravity is able to bend and split the image of the farther one into four copies arranged around it like so.

Most of the other times this happens in nature it forms an Einstein-Cwolson Ring like this one,

Which is cool in itself, but the fact that these two galaxies coincidentally form a cross was just too interesting for me to pass up. Also, the nature of illusions fascinates me in general, since objectively it's not real but for us the observers it clearly is in a sense. Maybe I can't help but compare it to the visions of a Saint, as a sort of "God-induced useful hallucination." I don't know.


So, I guess in addition to finding it really beautiful, I also find it spiritually significant (without knowing precisely why or even if I really should) ??? ...

I could have sworn your avatar was chasing the Starship Enterprise in one episode.

Thinking of the Crystalline Entity?

There's probably been a couple of other things over the years that look a bit like Einstein's Cross, too.

No, it was very low tech. The lights would fade and brighten. It is likely the original series (1966-1969), but I could be wrong.

 

[Volnutt]

The Einstein Cross. There are actually only two galaxies in the image, the other three are an illusion. The closer one to us is just in such an exact relative position that its gravity is able to bend and split the image of the farther one into four copies arranged around it like so.

Most of the other times this happens in nature it forms an Einstein-Cwolson Ring like this one,

Which is cool in itself, but the fact that these two galaxies coincidentally form a cross was just too interesting for me to pass up. Also, the nature of illusions fascinates me in general, since objectively it's not real but for us the observers it clearly is in a sense. Maybe I can't help but compare it to the visions of a Saint, as a sort of "God-induced useful hallucination." I don't know.


So, I guess in addition to finding it really beautiful, I also find it spiritually significant (without knowing precisely why or even if I really should) ??? ...

I could have sworn your avatar was chasing the Starship Enterprise in one episode.

Thinking of the Crystalline Entity?

There's probably been a couple of other things over the years that look a bit like Einstein's Cross, too.

No, it was very low tech. The lights would fade and brighten. It is likely the original series (1966-1969), but I could be wrong.

Sounds like either Nomad from "The Changeling," the entity from "Day of the Dove," or the Melkotian probe from "Spectre of the Gun" (or maybe Balock's ship from "The Corbomite Maneuver").

 

[Opus118]

Thanks! You are amazing. It was the last one on your list.

 

[Volnutt]

Glad it could be of help

 

[vamrat]

I was reading up on the Napoleonic Wars when I last changed my avatar so figured why not have an icon of an admiral who fought in the wars and is a saint as well.