What do you have set as your browser home page? News, e-mail, this website? I remember, back when dialup was still fashionable, that I had tried to make my homepage "about:blank" so it wouldn't even try loading anything...instead I made it "aobut:blank" so it would automatically give an error screen. Then left it like that for a year.
For the longest time I've had CNN.com as the homepage (and Alla's homepage on the laptop). Recently though I was checking out some of the options on Google and started using the Google personalized homepage. It's set up right now with my Gmail inbox on the left, CNN news and Google Top Stories in the middle, and my local weather on the right. This is all below the original Google search bar. You can add lots of other content or leave it as bare as you want.
I think I'm about ready to set it as my actual homepage.