From Wall Street to Washington Road in Mt. Lebanon, the economic crisis has Americans pinching pennies and pointing fingers -- at least when those fingers are not crossed.

"My parents lived through the Great Depression and always taught me to save money,'' Marie Stewart said.

"So I save, invest and now at age 66 probably gotta go back to work,'' said Mrs. Stewart, of Pensacola, Fla., a retired nurse who is visiting family in the South Hills this week.

Mrs. Stewart, sipping coffee Monday at an outdoor table at a Mt. Lebanon cafe, joked -- "a bad joke to be sure" -- that she is " fearful of opening my 401(k) statement and seeing how much I've lost.''

Mrs. Stewart, like many of the residents of the South Hills we polled about the ongoing financial crisis, said the scary economic climate [''forget Halloween, this is really spooky"] influences everything she does these days.

"This week's trip [to family in South Hills] may be the last I take in a while,'' she said. "This [air] ticket cost about 15 percent more than one I bought in April,'' she said.

Mrs. Stewart said that learning more about the economic plan of presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain is what will eventually decide her vote on Nov. 4.

But right now, she ''hasn't a lot of faith in either.'' And, she said Tuesday's presidential candidate debate wasn't ''spirited, nor was it specific enough" to sooth her fears about the direction of the nation.

Mrs. Stewart was circumspect about last week's historic bailout of the financial system.

"Part of me says it's needed to move forward, the other part of me says it's Wall Street -- not my kids on Main Street -- who will get needed help,'' she said.

We asked some other residents of the South Hills how they are coping. In a random, on-the-street poll, we asked: "How has the economic crisis affected you? Have you cut back on expenses? Do you have an opinion about what caused the crisis or who can fix it?

Here is what some of your worried neighbors are saying.

Donna Hillgrove, of Dormont, minces no words: "I've never been more frightened in my 65 years. I've never watched pennies the way I do now. I used to feel secure. My husband and I are retired and we don't know what to do next,'' she said.

Judy Dyda, of Beechview, sees parallels to the Great Depression.

"My mother grew up during the Depression and spent her entire life saving, bringing leftovers home from restaurants, swiping the little salt and pepper packets. I see that day coming for me. That's how frightened I am,'' she said.

Ms. Dyda, 54, a widow, said she is "watching my investment accounts go down and my entire retirement account disappear.

"We'll see if the bailout works. I hope the election in November brings change," said Ms. Dyda, who works for Southside Local Development Co.

Patti Trettle, of Brookline, said she "like most others, can't shop or do things like we used to. You have to take everything into consideration, including the fact that your retirement accounts are affected.

"I think both political parties are to blame for this mess ... there's greed involved,'' said Ms. Trettle, 43, a stay-at-home mom.

Trudy Hollatz, of Green Tree, said things have gotten so expensive that "one is robbing Peter to pay Paul just to put food in your house.''

"I blame our president and do not want to see another Republican in office. Barack Obama sounds good; I hope he's able to keep his promises,'' said Ms. Hollatz, 58, who is disabled.

Carolyn Corry, of Dormont, said that while "there are always going to be cycles in the economy, I think this administration has mismanaged this one.''

Ms. Corry, 55, a referee for the Bureau of Unemployment Compensation in McKeesport, said that the best way to set things ''back on track is to get the other party in power.''

Still, she adds "the bailout is one of the few things that Bush did right.''

Bernard Warner, of Brookline, said he did not know if the bailout was a ''band aid or a long-term fix.''

But he does think that "Americans are going to have to readjust their style of living, in terms of spending and buying,'' he said. "We have to tighten our belts.''

"I'm torn between [political] parties. Whoever does become the president will have his hands full,'' said Mr. Warner, 57, an architectural designer.

Retiree Carmella Vatral, 77, of West Mifflin, said the economy "stinks'' and fears a ''crash like the one in 1929 is coming.''

"I think people are already on the street selling apples -- if they can afford the apples. These days even apples are expensive. I remember my father, 50 years ago, telling me that bread would go up to $2 a loaf. I would say: 'Oh Pop ... .' "

Joanne Sinichak, of Duquesne, thinks the bailout "is a shakedown of the American people by politicians.''

She suggested that [Treasury Secretary Henry] Paulsen, [Federal Reserve Chairman Benjamin] Bernake and [Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher] Cox resign.

"They are foxes guarding the henhouse,'' said Ms. Sinichak, 64, a retiree.

Ian Green, of Homestead, said he and others are "struggling to make it work this month, which is a lot harder than last month, which is a lot harder than the month before ... .''

Mr. Green, 36, an artist, said: You have to really be inventive if you're trying to make money as an artist. You have to be fluid and flexible in the way you approach life and work.''

John Defazio, of White Oak, is also circumspect -- to a point.

"The economy is what it is. It's not going to get any better for a long time. We have to live through it -- but then some of us have done this before.

"We need to throw everybody out of Washington and start over again,'' said Mr. Defazio, 71, a retiree.

Mike Horrell blames "the president of the United States ... he knew what was going on and he should have put a stop to it.

"People should to go jail for what went on on Wall Street,'' said Mr. Horrell, 47, Munhall, a driver for a funeral home.

Margaret Davis, of Munhall, said the bailout is "not perfect, but is necessary,''

Ms. Davis, 30, of Munhall, is a supervisor at Starbucks at The Waterfront, and surmises that "the average person is going to have to work in the service industry rather than having a high-paying job."

Srini Gopalan, of Upper St. Clair, said the bailout package will help the nation.

"I'm confident that the bailout money will help bring markets back. We will see improvement in our 401Ks and our investments in the near future," said Mr. Gopalan, 39, a student at the Joseph M. Katz School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh.

He emphasized that "the government needs to ensure that the money put out as part of the bailout package and given to these big organizations is recouped back in some form.''

Still, for some it's not all bad news.

Rachel Battaglia, of Dormont, said "My father is a consultant so it's affecting him positively. He has a lot more business now because lots of places are cutting corners and need a consultant to help them not go bankrupt. He works for banks and grocery stores,'' said Ms. Battaglia, 24, a mental health specialist at Pressley Ridge School on the North Side.