You know you have a timeshare addiction when...

[funtime]

You know you have a timeshare addiction when .... you put your timeshare up on ebay for sale and look for comparator timeshares to see how they are doing and the pricing their owners are asking and then have to strongly resist bidding on the comparator units!!

 

[liborn2]

How true, or you go to work and a co worker is retiring and sells you her timeshare...I just did that, I didn't look for it, it came to me..

 

[naudette]

Is there a 12 step program for this addiction, especially to the boards? I have to go out of town for a 3 day business meeting tomorrow. Not sure if I'll survive the withdrawal.

 

[janapur]

You buy at a resort sight unseen because you love the area and have read great reviews . . . and then, before you've even used your new week, you bid on a week at the identical resort because it is a larger unit!

Jana

 

[DaveNV]

You buy at a resort sight unseen because you love the area and have read great reviews . . . and then, before you've even used your new week, you bid on a week at the identical resort because it is a larger unit!

Jana

Uh oh. I basically did that at PAHIO @ Kauai Beach Villas. Bought a Lagoon View unit last summer for a great price, but can't use it till 2009. Then in November, I bought an oceanfront unit at the same resort, because the price was great and the view was better. Now I don't have a clue what to do with the first one. I can't use two of them.

I think I may have to watch myself...

Dave

 

[tombo]

I tried to get Hawaii or Aruba through an rci exchange with no luck, but I showed them, I bought a Kauai Beach Villas week and a Sint Maarten week so I can go to Hawaii and the Caribbean without exchanging. Not only have I never seen either resort, I have never been to either Island.

This Friday I was looking into exchanging with RCI for a ski week in North Carolina for December 2008 when my kids are out of college after having an enjoyable exchange there this December. I decided to check e-bay on a whim and of course I now own a week there every December.

I need to forget my E-bay password as I keep finding deals that seem too good to be true. 20 weeks currently owned. Time to start a 12 step program.............Hi.......... My name is Tom and I am a timeshare addict............

 

[Steamboat Bill]

The real question is how many people own more than 52 weeks so they can TS 365 days per year....permenant TS vacation.

 

[nazclk]

You know when

you have to keep a list so you don't forget what you own .....:hysterical:

 

[talkamotta]

you have to keep a list so you don't forget what you own .....:hysterical:

Im getting very good at geography just thinking where my timeshares are in my head.

Im already on my way.


Steamboat:

Until you retire it should be if you own more weeks than you have vacation. I own 8 1/2 weeks and I only have 7 weeks vacation. But Im gearing up for retirement. :hysterical:

 

[Aussiedog]

I need to forget my E-bay password as I keep finding deals that seem too good to be true. 20 weeks currently owned. Time to start a 12 step program.............Hi.......... My name is Tom and I am a timeshare addict............

I don't have time for 12 steps........that leaves me way too much time to snipe another one

Ann

 

[ownsmany]

When . . .

you have to keep a list so you don't forget what you own .....:hysterical:

you have to use a spreadsheet to track them, don't deposit it in time and have to get a flex change for it.

Also when you worry something unforseeen happens to you and DH finds out about your addiction after your "gone".

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

you have to keep a list so you don't forget what you own .....:hysterical:

DW keeps bugging me to put together a spreadsheet to keep track. Not because I've forgotten any though - because she gets confused.

Which leads to a logical question: how many of us have spouses that:

1. Are completely baffled at how many timeshares the family owns?
2. Understand that timeshares can be exchanged but really haven't the slightest interest in knowing how it really works?
3. Roll their eyes whenever the topic of timesharing comes up in a social setting?
4. Are extremely happy at all of the wonderful trips and fine accommodations they get to enjoy as the fruits of the addicted ones efforts?

Here's one!

 

[pointsjunkie]

DW keeps bugging me to put together a spreadsheet to keep track. Not because I've forgotten any though - because she gets confused.

Which leads to a logical question: how many of us have spouses that:

1. Are completely baffled at how many timeshares the family owns?
2. Understand that timeshares can be exchanged but really haven't the slightest interest in knowing how it really works?
3. Roll their eyes whenever the topic of timesharing comes up in a social setting?
4. Are extremely happy at all of the wonderful trips and fine accommodations they get to enjoy as the fruits of the addicted ones efforts?

Here's one!

that is definitely my husband, reaps all the benefits but has no idea or desire to understand how it works.

 

[Polly Metallic]

that is definitely my husband, reaps all the benefits but has no idea or desire to understand how it works.

My situation is similar. DH isn't "into" timeshares the same as I am but enjoys our trips. I usually say "Guess where we're going next," and he cheerfully accepts whatever I plan.

 

[JudyS]

..Which leads to a logical question: how many of us have spouses that:

1. Are completely baffled at how many timeshares the family owns?
2. Understand that timeshares can be exchanged but really haven't the slightest interest in knowing how it really works?
3. Roll their eyes whenever the topic of timesharing comes up in a social setting?
4. Are extremely happy at all of the wonderful trips and fine accommodations they get to enjoy as the fruits of the addicted ones efforts?

...

Well, my DH basically fits that pattern, although he doesn't mind my talking about timeshares (as long as I don't talk just about timeshares.) However, he earned most of the money that I used to buy our timeshares, so I figure it's not a bad deal for me.

 

[CMF]

When you consider buying an internet phone card for your laptop because the Blackberry just doesn't cut it when trying to keep tabs on TUG when moving from place to place . . . soooo sad


Charles

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Ok - I guess it's time to dust this off again. From a post made on an earlier version of the TUG BBS:

Yup, Sharon, you've caught the timeshare bug.

The infection has a well-defined pathology.

In the initial infection stages, the victim becomes noticeably anxious and stimulated as the bug spreads throughout the body The victim excitedly makes travel and vacation plans, but this excitement is accompanied by bewilderment as the victim becomes overwhelmed by the pervasiveness and variants in the timeshare bug world-wide. Some confusion and doubt is also typical at this stage as victims wonder what is happening to them and have doubts about whether they made the right decisions. Sleeplessness, accompanied by long hours of looking on line for exchanges, is also common at this stage. Sudden urges to buy more timeshares may also appear at this stage, especially if the victim has been exposed to one of the South African versions.

After several months the symptoms moderate, and the infection becomes a lower grade, chronic infection. The confusion and doubt always diminish in this stage and are the best evidence that the infection is moving into a chronic state. Even after reaching a chronic state, however, the infection periodically flares up into a highly active and visible form, often at least once or twice per year. The more vacation time the victim has available, the more frequent and severe the flare-ups are likely to be.

Research has shown that the mode of transmission for the timeshare bug is via a process called "exchanging", and this occurs in two distinct steps. The process is initiated when the victim" makes" an exchange. This is often accompanied by a sudden burst of happiness, sometimes reaching euphoria. Sometime after the exchange is made, the person usually travels to a distant location to "complete" the exchange. This process usually lasts for about one week. As the exchange is completed, the person usually experiences deep satisfaction. At this time the infection is often transmitted to family members and friends of the victim who are present during the exchange.

Secondary flare-ups can also occur at any time independent of the exchanging process. These are often accompanied by such behaviors as buying or selling of timeshares. These secondary flare-ups are easily triggered by messages from other carriers of the infection. A single message on a BBS has been known to cause simultaneous frenzied buying of timeshare by infected individuals.

Several clear variants in the pathology of the disease are recognized. In Harper's Condition the victim engages in uninterrupted exchange completions lasting as long as four or five months. Fletch's Disorder manifests itself in the continual buying and selling of timeshares, frequent exchange completion, and uncontrollable urges to transmit the Marriott and Royal strains of the bug. DeSchryver’s Syndrome is a particularly strong variant. A victim with DeSchryver's Syndrome manages to maintain the euphoria of the initial stages of the disease almost uninterruptedly into the later stages. A DeSchryver case will also obsess in searching for the timeshare that is the ultimate combination of low cost and high exchange power, and will buy, sell and test timeshares continuously in pursuit of that goal. The DeSchryver also uses the excitement associated with that pursuit to amplify the other pleasurable aspects of the timesharing infection.

There is no known cure for a timeshare infection; nor is there any reason to try to cure the infection since it actually is beneficial. In addition to the pleasurable symptoms described above, many of the victims report lowered stress, happier family life, and increased mental stimulation due to the infection. The only recommended treatment is frequent interaction with a support group comprised of other infected individuals. The TUG remedy has been documented to be the most effective mode of treatment.

This post is old enough now that most of the people referred to are no longer around. I don't recall seeing anything from Lisa DeSchryver (aka, "Buff Mom") for at least four or five years now. I believe age caught up with Ray Harper, and his health no longer allows him to take the extended timesharing vacations he formerly did. After losing his job in NYC post-911 Fletch is now a Marriott timeshare salesman in the SE or Florida. I believe that some of the long-time TUGgers in the area still have contact with Fletch, and every now and then he stops by.

Sharon - the person whose postings prompted this article - is still around. You probably know her as "3kids4me". And yes, she's still infected but her infection has passed to "chronic" from "acute".

 

[nazclk]

The other half

Steve you hit the nail on the head, it's a yes for my wife on all four of your statements. Her common saying is "tell me when to pack"

 

[brucecz]

The real question is how many people own more than 52 weeks so they can TS 365 days per year....permenant TS vacation.

I feel sorry for those really sick type of degenerates.:rofl: :rofl:

Bruce :rofl: :

 

[Kona Lovers]

....Hi.......... My name is Tom and I am a timeshare addict.....

Hi Tom. My name is Marty, and I'm a timeshare addict, too. Welcome to the group.

 

[BocaBum99]

You know you are a timeshare addict when you quit your job so that you can spend more time vacationing in timeshares. And, when you get to your destination, the first thing you do is visit all the local timeshares.

 

[jmatias]

And, when you get to your destination, the first thing you do is visit all the local timeshares.

That's what we do!

Currently in escrow on another unit that don't really need but just couldn't pass up the deal.

I told DH I was gonna sell some...not buy more

Jen

 

[DeniseM]

Fletch is now a Marriott timeshare salesman in the SE or Florida. I believe that some of the long-time TUGgers in the area still have contact with Fletch, and every now and then he stops by.

I could sure be wrong, but I thought I read that he was out of that now and owns his own business...something having to do with furnishings or interior design???

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

I could sure be wrong, but I thought I read that he was out of that now and owns his own business...something having to do with furnishings or interior design???

I don't recall hearing that about Fletch, but that sounds like what I heard Craig Urbine (former II rep) was up to.

 

[bigrick]

Several clear variants in the pathology of the disease are recognized. In Harper's Condition the victim engages in uninterrupted exchange completions lasting as long as four or five months. Fletch's Disorder manifests itself in the continual buying and selling of timeshares, frequent exchange completion, and uncontrollable urges to transmit the Marriott and Royal strains of the bug. DeSchryver’s Syndrome is a particularly strong variant. A victim with DeSchryver's Syndrome manages to maintain the euphoria of the initial stages of the disease almost uninterruptedly into the later stages. A DeSchryver case will also obsess in searching for the timeshare that is the ultimate combination of low cost and high exchange power, and will buy, sell and test timeshares continuously in pursuit of that goal. The DeSchryver also uses the excitement associated with that pursuit to amplify the other pleasurable aspects of the timesharing infection.

Steve, thank you, thank you. I thought I had a bad case of this timeshare bug. Thanks to your list I see more serious ailments I now want! Especially the ones that involve more selling. So far I only have the buy and test minor symptoms. I need to add the sell minor symptom to ensure I can succumb fully to these more serious conditions. It's nice to have goals!