I scream, you scream

That sweet smell of waffle cones and fudge fills your nose. Your taste buds start watering as you scan the long list of tantalizing flavors posted on the walls. That first cool, sweet taste on your tongue sends you into euphoria on a hot, humid day. Luckily, no matter where you live in Bloomington, odds are you don't live too far from a source of this one of a kind experience. \nBloomington contains a vast range of ice cream stores. This is good news for students, especially for freshmen who have been suddenly transplanted from friends, family and everything familiar. Ice cream is the ultimate comfort dessert -- no matter what flavor you get, it's always basically going to taste like ice cream. But where does one find that perfect blend of milk, fat and sugar?\nIn Bloomington, everywhere. \nFor those afraid to experiment or simply don't want to tamper with a good thing, Ben & Jerry's stands waiting on 413 E. Kirkwood Ave. The shop comes equipped with tried-and-true flavors like Cherry Garcia and more exotic, albeit market-tested, flavors like Kaberry Kaboom and Wavy Gravy. \nThe store is decorated with the typical Ben & Jerry's cow theme -- cow patterns cover the floor, walls and stools -- as if to belabor the point that ice cream, for all its rich and creamy goodness, has quite humble origins. But scooper and senior Matt Metzler says it doesn't bother him that ice cream ultimately comes from cow udders. \n"I think just about anything you eat is going to have some sort of animal byproduct in it," Metzler says. "That's just the way things are, so I try not to think about it much." Metzler, a senior, says Ben & Jerry's ice cream can be beneficial to students far from home because it's a national brand, so they won't have to deal with any unexpected changes. "Ben & Jerry's is generally recognized as superior quality -- it's synonymous with natural ingredients, not using hormones or steroids in their cows," Metzler says.\nBut for the die-hard Edy's fan, Scoops at 2636 E. Third serves nothing else. Manager Jessica Mcgill says Scoops offers the same familiarity factor that \nBen & Jerry's does. \n"People know it's Edy's, so they know they're going to like it," Mcgill says. "They can buy a large variety of flavors, and they know what they're going to get."\nDairy Queen at 2423 S. Walnut is another reliable option. \n"We're using the same recipe we've used since the 1940s," manager Les McCord says. "It's been proven that people like it."\nThe Chocolate Moose, at 401 S. Walnut, provides the same Dairy Queen-like atmosphere, but with a Bloomington touch. It's difficult to get an interview; for over an hour, the line at the stand remains around 20 people deep as Chocolate Moose employees whip out homemade soft-serve as fast as they can. Finally, owner Tim May is able to explain the feeding frenzy. "I put my finger in each batch to make it sweeter," May jokes. "But not really. Actually, I think the reason people like our ice cream so much is that we make it with all the best ingredients. Plus, there's the 14 percent butterfat content." \nMay also says because he's been making ice cream for so long, it's probable that he has the recipe nearly perfected. \n"I've been making ice cream for the last 18 years, like my father before me and his father before him," May says. "So I guess I've gotten pretty good at it over the years. People joke about how we've got ice cream in our veins."\nAt White Mountain Ice Creamery, 107 N. Dunn St., ice cream is also a family affair. Dawna Petersen and her husband have owned and operated the store for the past 19 years. \n"We just really like ice cream, I guess," Petersen says. "My first anniversary present that my husband gave me was a hand-crank ice cream freezer. After that, we just naturally gravitated toward the ice cream business." \nStill, there's more to ice cream than just ice cream. For those who like a good twist on the old-fashioned ice cream cone, White Mountain is one of the places that offers milkshakes, floats, coolers -- everything that can be made with ice cream but doesn't necessarily have to involve a cone. \nWhite Mountain also makes their own ice cream, and while the store doesn't deliver, it does cater.\nIf you've ever been to the Smoothie King across the street, chances are you've tried White Mountain ice cream. White Mountain supplies ice cream to Smoothie King as well as many of Bloomington's restaurants, such as the Limestone Grille, the Trojan Horse and the Ekimae Japanese restaurant. \nIf you prefer to sit back and let the ice cream come to you, Hartzell's Jiffy Treet at 425 E. Kirkwood does deliver ice cream, Cyclones and nearly every other kind of ice-cream-type treat every day from 6-10 p.m. Jiffy Treet is a Bloomington chain, not a national chain, and the Kirkwood store has been noted in the culinary trade magazine Bon Appetit for its homemade ice cream. \n"Every so often, we get a call from somewhere like North Carolina, from someone who wants our ice cream," Sooper Dan English says. "We'll ship it there, no problem. Everyone knows this is the best-tasting ice cream in the world." \nThe flavors, invented by the Jiffy Treet staff, are original and range from Cookie Dough to Ashley Bomb B-52. English, a senior who has worked at Jiffy Treet through four years at IU, says he gained 40 pounds after working there his freshman year.\nBruster's Ice cream, at 451 E. Third St., also makes up its own ice cream flavors. The store serves hard ice cream made using Bruster's own recipes. "Everything here tastes good," manager Laura Neubecker says. "It's got that homemade taste to it." \nAnd the store is pet-friendly. If you bring Spot in, they will give you a little cup of ice cream with a doggy biscuit on top for free.