Charles Dickens famously wrote in his classic A Tale of Two Cities, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” In the book it all boils down to circumstance, perspective, and action. The same can be said for your personal finances.

Recently we surveyed the Geezeo community and discovered that 59% of us were bummed out by the economy. (See this and other results here.) This view is plainly seen in this article from San Diego. The article mentions some of the struggles middle- to low-income Americans face with soaring fuel prices, the issue Geezeo members voted as the “Biggest Economic Issue Facing the U.S. Today?”

So I’d like to pose two questions to our community. Please answer in the comments section below.

Are these bad times?
What are you doing to cut back, stretch a dollar, or make ends meet?

-AND/OR-

Are these good times?
Is it a good time to think optimistically and “go for the gold” while the market is down?

One Geezeo user wrote to ask my thoughts on a foreclosure purchase in this market. He agreed to let me quote him here because I said thought the larger community would have something to say on this topic. Here’s what he wrote:

My wife got really excited recently when she saw a foreclosure sign on a two family home, across the street from the house she grew up in. We have been homeowner for about four years now and have some equity in the house we live in. We also have 65,000 in proceeds from the sale of the two family home I owned before we got married. In light of the housing market and our financial position, is this a good time to jump into the investment real estate market? Thanks for your input.

So is it a time to drastically cut back on our lifestyles, or double-down on opportunity? A Tale of Two Cities…

Wow! Who knew the Geezeo community had so much to say about the current state of the economy? Thank you for participating in our survey. The results were pretty astounding.

To the question: “Is the state of the economy bumming you out?” —

Fifty-six (56%) percent of you said, “Yes — I’ve changed some of my behavior recently because of current conditions.”

So, does this mean 56% of us are really in a downer mood? Geezeo user Chungce summed up this attitude when he said plainly: “This economy is awful.”

Or does this mean that 56% of us are reacting to current conditions as best we can?

A user named Skigod perhaps summed up what many are feeling:

“This economy is a bummer and I think it will continue to worsen for a while. We are paying for the self-indulgent - immediate gratification lifestyle we have been living for some time. That compounded with the fact that our government is even a bigger spendthrift and wasteful than our society. With the trillions in debt and Washington still has it’s foot on the spending accelerator we will be saddled with this financial albatross for many generations. This country needs to get back on track in so many ways!”

How do politics play a role? Geezeo user Volfan quickly wrote to say:

“If any responsible citizen has done their homework they would know that our not so illustrious Congress or Senate has rejected proposals for both off-shore and inshore drilling. Believe it or not President Bush is “NOT TO BLAME”!”

But is it really all that bad? Not everyone seemed to think so. Forty-four of you agreed:

“Nah, no way. There are still opportunities everywhere.”

Wrote Geezeo user Jospeh:

“I don’t buy into all the negative hype the media is dishing out in regard to state of the economy.”

Good point, Jospeh. The media we consume greatly affects our perception of reality.

Lakedreamer added:

“Good or bad, there is always a new goal to challenge you and open new avenues for advancement.”

I agree with Lakedreamer, for sure!

So how exactly is the energy crisis affecting our community? The housing market? Health insurance? While these are complex topics, our Geezeo community has a lot of feet-on-the-ground, practical experience dealing with these issues.

How many have gone without health insurance? How many are upside down on their mortgage? Stay tuned this week and we’ll show you how you compare to the rest of the Geezeo community in attitude and practical experience.

If you’re eager to discuss these results, check out the many related discussions and groups. We have discussions as diverse as Politics and Money to First Time Homebuyers to Carless Crusaders to Health Insurance - AHHH!

It’s your economy — and your money!

Are these good times, or bad? Voice your opinion at this brief survey. Results next week!