(MONEY Magazine) – Q I own a two-week time-share in Kauai, Hawaii. The problem isn't with the time- share but rather with Resort Condominiums International (RCI), which runs a program that allows time-share owners like me to swap their units with other owners around the world. So far, though, I've had trouble trading for another unit in an acceptable resort. As a result, I've already lost two weeks' use of my time-share and could lose more. Do all RCI members have this problem? Holly Siebert Kawakami Tokyo

A No, says RCI. Through spokesman John Sherman, the company claims that its exchange-fulfillment rate is around 99%. He had no figures indicating how many customers get into their first choice, however. Anyway, Sherman got out your file and opined that you were being too specific about which weeks and resorts you were willing to accept in return for use of your Kauai condo. You would have a better shot at an exchange, he asserted, by requesting something broader -- like Florida in February. (In other words, instead of holding out for a week on the beach in balmy St. Pete, you should happily make do with seven days in, say, rainy Pensacola.) Sherman also suggests that you always make your request at least a year in advance to ensure that you get the spots you want. Well, maybe. Very few people, other than the jobless and the childless, can plan vacations that far in advance. And as for your being too picky, at least one of your requests -- for anywhere in the Midwest in July -- could hardly have been more accommodating. I think you should let your $59 annual membership in RCI lapse and use your Kauai condo yourself -- or if that isn't practical, sell it and spend the proceeds on a vacation wherever and whenever you want.

Q I'm looking for mutual funds that specialize in companies in financial difficulty (Chapter 11, a management turnaround and so on). Can you help? Mitchell Gooze Sunnyvale, Calif.

A Here are three funds that pick over distressed companies: Mutual Beacon (which gained 86.2% over the five years to April 1; no load; 800-448-3863); Merrill Lynch Phoenix A (up 66.1%; 6.5% load; 609-282-2800); and the Third Avenue Fund (up 38% since its inception in October 1990; no load; 212-888-6685). In the past couple of years, few of the vulture funds have turned in the kind of performance that makes an investor's heart beat faster. But by and large they've picked up in the first quarter of this year, and they may be due for further gains, says Don Phillips, editor of Mutual Fund Values, a fund investment survey. His reasoning: the enormous debts many companies took on in the past few years will lead to bankruptcies, management shake-ups and, therefore, plenty of opportunities for salvage-minded funds.

Q At the height of the Cabbage Patch doll craze, I received one that had been handmade in 1981 by the dolls' creator, Xavier Roberts. It was purchased for $500 (I have the canceled check and the doll's birth certificate). Now I want to get rid of the doll, but I don't know how. Any ideas? Rena Chinn Issaquah, Wash.

A Get rid of your adopted baby! Is that any way to talk? According to a spokesman for Roberts' company, Original Appalachian Artworks, your doll was part of one of the largest editions of unsigned Cabbage Patch dolls (73,000) produced before 1983 -- the year that millions of mass-manufactured models started to appear. To sell it, you can place a classified ad in Contemporary Doll Magazine (30595 Eight Mile Rd., Livonia, Mich. 48152; 313-477-6650). Don't expect to get much lolly for your dolly, however. The retail price in 1981 was $125 (so I'm not sure why yours cost $500), and it's worth no more than $400 today. Even if your doll was later signed by Roberts, it would still be worth no more than your original $500. Worse, other doll experts place its value at just $300, or perhaps as much as $375 if the baby has curled, rolled or ketchup-colored hair. (Go figure.) Want to feel more depressed? Had your doll been part of the 1978 ''Helen Blue'' edition of fewer than 1,000 Cabbage Patchers, it would be worth about $7,000. To quote Betsy Wetsy, ''Waaah!''

Q MONEY magazine always recommends using 401(k)s, tax-sheltered annuities and other salary-reduction programs to cut tax bills, but I have never seen any mention of the way these contributions affect future Social Security payments. Since the income you report to the government is reduced by the amount of your contributions to these programs, it stands to reason that future Social , Security benefits -- which are based on earned income -- will also be reduced. How much money might this trade-off involve? Mrs. K. Herman Stevens Point, Wis.

A Put your worries to rest.Your future Social Security benefits are not altered by contributions to a salary-reduction retirement plan. That's because benefits are calculated on the basis of gross income, regardless of how much you shunt off into a 401(k) or TSA. By the same token, though, your contributions don't reduce your Social Security taxes -- now a painful 6.2%.