I would also point out that you are confusing the "normal" style and the normal.dot template. This confusion is understandable given the nomenclature.
In Word 2003 the normal style is used as a default base for most other styles and in creating envelopes and labels. It is present in every document and template whether or not it is used.
I avoid using it and base most of my text styles on my "body text" style. My heading styles are also not based on the normal style but cascade. See
Understanding Styles in Microsoft Word.
Additional recommended reading:
If you gather that I think that an understanding of both templates and styles is crucial to using Word effectively, you would be right.
One final point is to make sure that any document you use as the basis for a template does NOT have the option checked to update styles from the template. (Tools > Templates and Add-Ins) See
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/shar...matchange.html.