When you order ice cream at Baskin-Robbins, the cute girl with a little bit of acne grabs a scooper from the water-filled trough that holds the other scoopers and she flips open the hinged glass door that provides access to the thirty-one large tubs of ice cream that have names on a paper tag like Miami Ice and Chocolate Fulfill-Mint. These three-gallon tubs are made of cheap cardboard so that they’re easier to lift but they freeze solid and provide decent insulation, and with a little practice an ice cream employee can perfect the technique and soon be rolling out tennis-ball-sized ice cream spheres in all flavors.

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