Do You Scream for Free Ice Cream?

free ice creamA few days ago I was leaving work when one of my coworkers pranced in the door. She was absolutely elated.

“We just got Ben & Jerry’s!” she said. “It’s free ice cream day.”

In her mind, when she hears “free ice cream,” she gets excited and happy. She gets something for free.

But this type of free has the opposite effect on me. I hear “Ben & Jerry’s free ice cream day” and I instantly move Ben & Jerry’s to the very bottom of my List of Places I Will Avoid at All Costs Today. I envision long lines and smaller than normal scoops of ice cream. I don’t want that. If I’m ever compelled to go to an ice cream parlor, I want to go on any of the days when I have to pay for my ice cream.

What do you think when you hear “free ice cream day”?

17 thoughts on “Do You Scream for Free Ice Cream?”

  1. When I hear, “Free Ice Cream,” I think, “Jamey has the largest social network of anyone I know, and he posts a lot of stuff on his Facebook page. For the love of cats! Why doesn’t he post this stuff on his Facebook page on the day it’s free?!?” Then I think, “Maybe he used that newfangled Twitter thing instead.” Then I have an angry internal debate about becoming an active user of Twitter and whether it’s worth knowing about free ice cream. Then I resign myself to the fact that technology has passed me by, and that I will need to find some other way of learning about free ice cream like promotional cassette tapes or leaflets posted in town square.

    Reply
    • The world really isn’t the same without town squares. How do people find out about anything these days?!

      For the love of cats, I’ll post the next time I hear about free ice cream day. That way more people will go get ice cream on that day instead of the other 364 days, leaving me with shorter lines whenever I want ice cream. Although, as Katy noted, if I want ice cream, I’m probably just going to buy it from the grocery store. You get like 4 times as many servings that way for the same price.

      Reply
  2. I think I enjoy free stuff just as much as the next person, but wouldn’t go out of my way to stand in line for a free ice cream cone. At least not a Ben & Jerry’s one, when it is so easy to just pop over to Schnucks (or any grocery store really) and pick up a small carton to satisfy a Cherry Garcia or Phish Food craving. Now, if Crown Candy was hosting a similar event it would be a different story, as waiting in line for an eternity there is just part of the experience already.

    Oh, and I agree with Trevor here and wonder why this valuable information wasn’t shared until after the promotion was over?!? 🙂

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  3. Can we just go ahead and give Trevor his Lifetime Achievement Award in the category of blog commenting? I mean this dude freaking brings it to the plate every day.

    Reply
    • Can I give out lifetime achievement awards? I think everyone who has commented on this post so far would receive one. I’d probably give out too many awards, diluting the efficacy of the award.

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    • I like how this has quickly turned into people bemoaning the fact that I didn’t tell you about free ice cream day. Just go to Ben & Jerry’s and get some ice cream! If you bring me some I’ll pay for all of us.

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  4. I typically avoid places giving away free things because I’m not a big fan of lines or large crowds of people. You wouldn’t find me at Ben & Jerry’s on free ice cream day. 🙂 Just like Katy mentioned there are places like Crown Candy that you might find me at…there is a Mexican restaurant on Cherokee that makes their ice cream and I would stand in line there even though I’ve never had to wait before. 🙂

    Reply
    • Is the Mexican restaurant you mentioned the one that has corn ice cream? I visited a place on Cherokee last summer that was pretty remarkable and worth visiting again, but didn’t make a note of the name.

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        • I think the place I visited was called La Vallesana (I just did a quick search of my transactions from last summer– thank you online banking). And just thinking about the tasty guacamole and ice cream has me craving that place again now…. I might have to make a return trip sometime soon.

          Reply
          • That’s the one! I love their guacamole and ice cream. 🙂 I haven’t seen corn ice cream but I have tried cheese ice cream. I didn’t like the texture on that one. They have a number of regular flavors and then they throw in some different ones. If you like things nice and spicy they have a spicy mango which is pretty good. 🙂 I don’t live too far from there so when the weather is nice we walk there quite a bit.

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  5. I’m with you on this one! Though I have a child, and am pregnant, and love most children, I think it sounds miserable to wait in lines where the number of kiddos will likely far outweigh the number of adults. If I think about what my time is worth to me, I wouldn’t even last five minutes in that environment for the reward of free ice cream.

    There’s other ice cream shops one could pay at on that day, the grocery or homemade ice cream. We LOVE making ice cream, and the freshness cannot be beat.

    And now the baby wants ice cream. Thanks so much. 😉

    Reply
    • Penelope^2,

      Good call on making ice cream. I had a bad impression of homemade ice cream from my childhood (it just tasted like runny ice), but my parents changed that impression this past summer with a new ice cream machine. A-MAzing.

      That’s serendipitous that the baby wants the exact same thing that you do! You can’t say no to the baby.

      Reply
  6. I happened to be near Maggie Moo’s on April 1 this year and it was 30 cent ice cream day with a free mix-in. I never really seek these things out, but since I was RIGHT THERE, I had to get some. And — it was delicious (peppermint ice cream with chocolate chips mixed in)!
    I agree, though, the “free stuff” doesn’t compel me to go. I think that’s also what keeps me from the “black Friday” madness (I will NEVER go) — people act like wild animals when there is even the slightest perception they may get something for free or for a really good deal.

    Reply
    • Another thing I avoid — ANY place on tax-free weekend. I forgot one time and found myself at a mall. HORRIBLE mistake. People were totally out of their minds.

      Reply

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