Server version: 5.0.51a-24+lenny4-log (Debian)
mysql> SHOW PROCESSLIST;
+------+----------+------------------+----------+---------+------+-------+------------------+
| Id | User | Host | db | Command | Time | State | Info |
+------+----------+------------------+----------+---------+------+-------+------------------+
| 902 | mysqlusr | 11.11.11.1:33582 | mydatabs | Sleep | 632 | | NULL |
| 1328 | root | localhost | NULL | Query | 0 | NULL | show processlist |
+------+----------+------------------+----------+---------+------+-------+------------------+
2 rows in set (0.00 sec)
I'm running Debian GNU/Linux 5.0, and I'm having 8 * Intel Xeon X5450 @ 3GHz and 6 GB RAM. I've tried to restart the mysql process, and reboot my machine. It holds at like 1% in 5 minutes, but suddently, it's up to 90-120%, and it stays that way until i restart the mysql process.
You're right, 103 still seems to be pretty high, but I've also read that it doesn't always report accurately. Look around for some discussion on the matter. There are some third party monitoring tools that are more accurate.