When our baby was born, we, like most parents registered for a modest monitor with decent ratings.  We figured with a name like Sony, we could hardly go wrong.  To be fair, maybe we got a lemon, or something, but the thing just didn’t work well at all.

Our baby’s bedroom is at the back of the house, with a bathroom near the middle of the house, and the family room at the other end of the house.  While my wife and I stayed home with our new baby for her first 3 weeks; we took many showers in the middle of the day.

With the base station in the baby’s room, the receiver at the other end of the house (well within the stated range on the box) and one of us in the shower in between… The static in the living room was so bad in the living room that we couldn’t hear the TV or other people talking in the room!

We got the monitor at Babys ‘R’ Us, and were lucky that they took it back and let us exchange it for another one.  We were told by the sales people there that our problem was likely due to the fact that the monitor was an analog monitor.  So we took their advice and tried a new one, this time a digital one.

The monitor we switched to was the Summer Infant Slim, and it was a night and day difference.  With the new monitor we were able to walk all around the house without any interference, static, or crackling like we had with the Sony from above.  The transmitter is so sensitive that we can hear her breathing when she has a stuffy nose!

The range is at least double what the Sony one was.  In the fall we can take it out to the fire pit in the backyard without any loss of signal.  When we bought ours 6 months ago it was considerably more pricy, but it was worth every single penny.

Take my advice, pay a little more and get a digital monitor over an analog one, it’ll save you a lot of sleep, and a lot of static.

Several months ago, I bought some Johnston & Murphy shoes at an outlet store while I was on vacation.  I was working in my first real “big boy” job at a major financial institution, and needed some new shoes that were worthy of my new surroundings and pay grade. While I was making more money, I had only gotten a few pay checks, so I was still looking for a deal.

I really liked these shoes when I tried them on, and decided to buy them, one in black and one in brown.  Between the two pairs, I’d worn them 6 days a week for about 6 months.  They were pretty much the most comfortable shoes I’d owned up to this point, which was great because I was in them for 8 – 10 hours a day.

About 6 months in, I noticed that the left shoe in my brown pair started developing a slight squeak whenever I put weight on it.  The sound got way louder when the shoes were wet.  “Oh no, I paid $100 + for shoes that would only last me 6 months?” I was a little disappointed, but I still liked the way the shoes felt and looked… I guess I would just have to stay out of puddles.

Several weeks later my wife and I were in a local mall back home, and saw a Johnston & Murphy store.  We decided to go in to see if they had another pair like the one I loved with the squeak.  I walked up to the counter and told the salesperson what the issue was, and why I was wanting to replace the shoe.  He politely asked me to sit in one of the chairs while he went to the back to see if he had any of that particular style in stock.

After a few minutes, he walked back with a pair in hand.  He laced them up, and put the shoes on for me.  My wife looked at me like “what great service…” and I nodded back.  I walked around and sure enough, they felt just like the pair I had.

I was sold once again, and asked the salesperson to wrap them up, “I’ll take it.”  I took the shoes off, and was ready to start haggling with the guy as he started punching things into the register.  “My old pair only lasted me 6 months, could I talk you into maybe a 20% discount?” I asked him.  He looked at me and said “Sir you don’t owe me a thing, I’m just getting my inventory updated.”

My wife and I were stunned!  We couldn’t believe the service, and the gesture.  Johnston & Murphy has found a customer for life in me.  I will always buy my shoes from the Johnston & Murphy’s at the Chesterfield mall in St. Louis…. as long as I live in St. Louis anyway.

Great products, and great service.  Thank you very much.