Recently my HTC Magic was updated to Android version 2.2.1, it is a great upgrade almost everything is better.
However a minor niggle was that my gmail contact picture for myself no longer appeared in in the text messaging view. Instead I was just a grey box.
I follow the Vodafone UK forum for this phone (I am on 2degrees) and it turned out that the newer version of android tries to read your cell number from your SIM, if it can't find it it will not know your own number and just display a grey box for your avatar http://bit.ly/eW4qcA. Vodafone and 2degrees do not program your SIM with your number.
It turns out that only a few phones can actually write your own number to a SIM card (not the Magic), but after a rummage through my junk drawer, I tried my old Motorola V525 and that worked fine. ( my old phone: http://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?ForumId=11&TopicId=59602 )
Now my contact picture is back on the phone. Just thought I would let you all know in case you have a similar problem.