I just recovered from it. Not five minutes ago - here's what happened.
Turns out if you send in the notice that your system crashed enough times, what ends up happening is the following:
1. You send the error in, and at the end, it thanks you, and there's a hyperlink you click giving you more information about your error. Believe me when I say that I mashed the 'Send' button on telling MS about the error almost a dozen times, and never got this prompt. BE SURE NOT TO BLOW OFF THE HYPERLINK, because this is the only way to find out SP3 of Office is available, and it will require to YET AGAIN install the MS Genuine Advantage DLL, and yet again install the new Office Update Installer Active X control before finding out that a new SP 3 is available.
2. It then tells you the error was MS's fault (there's news) and then it says SP3 FOR OFFICE IS AVAILABLE!!!!!!!
3. This is extraordinary, because in ensuring I had the latest updates for all my OS software and Office software, it told me using Windows Update that I have every new version of everything I could ever want. To the point that the only new fixes availabe were add-in's and other creature comfort enhancements to Office.
4. Long story short, it installs TWO new fixes - 1 is the SP3 for Office 2003, the second is an UPDATED SPAM FILTER DLL. Turns out THIS LATTER FILE is the actual culprit. Something flips a bit on the dll and shuts down your ability to receive ANYTHING on certain accounts. No way to reset this. Thus, the new improved DLL. Not a freaking word about this on any forum. As far as technet is concerned, as late as Sept 4, people were still having this issue world wide.
Anyway, I'm back, and without burning more time waiting in MS's support queue either.