I grew up working for my family in the family businesses. I was always proud of my family and my ancestors, even very young. I enjoyed sitting with my parents, grandparents and relatives and listening to stories. I went into the Marine Corps at 17, having to talk my mother into signing the waiver. After the Marines I became a Peace Officer in California, again something my mother and wife, both did not like. The job has it's issues, and one of them came to light in 1982 when I was injured pretty bad. Laying in a hospital bed at home, my mother gave me a large file box, filled with some of her genealogy collection, she said it would keep me occupied while I recovered. It did!
Since that day I have been so totally hooked. I have put all those stories I ever heard into print, I have put names to faces, faces to names, I have found relatives forgotten, I have talked with, written to, visited with, etc. family that I would never have known, I have hooked family up with other family members that did not know each other ... these are just some of those things about genealogy that keeps it in your blood, that makes you feel so good, that keeps you "hooked" on this so called hobby.
I have printed out family trees for so many of my young relatives for their school projects, I find myself telling them stories, just like I use to hear from my older relatives. I am retired now ... on a forced medical, and my hobby has turned into my full time job. I do not get paid for it, I do not have the money to spend on it like I did in years past, I have some family that asks me why do I deal with "dead people"? I start with telling them about my father, who passed away last year, and just go from there ...
I am so, so hooked. This is my very short version answer to this being hooked on genealogy question. Thank you for allowing me to give it to you.