Depending where one looks for information on these guys you'll get different answers, so many of them are synonymous with others it can be quite confusing. The powers that be keep playing musical chairs with genera so what's in one genus today might be somewhere else tomorrow. The leaf segments in the above picture are what I think of as a Christmas cactus, although the color of the flower differs from the old time Christmas cactus I'm familiar with. There are so many named and unnamed cultivars on the market today that are hybrids. If anyone knows someone still growing the old timer you should beg a piece. Most of these Holiday Cactus can be made to bloom throughout the year if you can control things like temperature and light. A

They remind me a little of the damage the scale insects did to mine. Round and scattered all over. Do the plants also have any small round, dark spots on them, perhaps under the leaves?

Hopefulauthor, did you mean P.T. Barnum? "A 'customer' born every minute" Or T. Tusser - "A fool and his money are soon parted"? But I too spent a ridiculous amount of money on a cactus (Schlumbergera opuntioides - also a Christmas Cactus), that quickly died from a Spidermite infestation! I was quite upset, but I did try to find it elsewhere for less or even as a trade but couldn't. Look at the Astrophytum caput-medusae.... When it was first discovered, someone had to pay "ridiculous" prices to get Phytosanitary inspections on plants and seeds to get them to the US and Europe. For the first few years, customers also paid ridiculous prices on eBay and other sites to get their plants. If they didn't, People today wouldn't be trading plants or selling seeds and plants for more reasonable prices. I'm sure pricing will also come down much more in the near future as the plants become more common. So, if you really want a plant and can't find it elsewhere, what options do you have? Pay the Price or go without. I don't think that makes any of us suckers or fools... Just passionate cactus lovers and collectors. And that's what allows all of us to get the plants we really like at reasonable prices.

Post a pic or two. Most likely it's in bad potting soil. These plants grow in the crooks of trees, so their roots are well-adapted to growing in a loose, bark-based mix (much like Orchid Mix). In nature, they receive frequent rains, but the water flows through the bark and leaf-litter and the roots don't sit very long in the water. These plants are jungle cacti, not dry land cacti, so they must be watered much more often. Purple coloration isn't a problem necessarily. Typically it indicates that the plant is receiving strong sun. But, in this case, it *could* be caused by drought-stress (not enough moisture, or dead roots). Again, pics required for a better assessment. Josh