GSC to offer midsem opportunity to complain, eat

October 6th, 2011 | By Alyce Eaton eatonaly@grinnell.edu | Section: Features

As Fall Break approaches, Grinnellians are becoming more and more on edge. Fortunately, next week Grinnellians Seeking Christ (GSC) will be offering an opportunity for students to share their sorrows and receive homemade brownies instead of judgment. GSC will be hosting “Bitching and Brownies” in Burling and Kistle libraries from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Wednesday night.

GSC wants this event to provide a forum in which students can outline their stresses to an affirming listener. All too often at Grinnell, sessions of commiseration turn into battles of who is the most stressed out, said Cailey Arensman ’14, a member of GSC, which is something that this event seeks to avoid.

“Basically, the idea behind Bitching and Brownies is coming up with a way for people who are really, really stressed out during midsems to be able to vent about it in sort of a constructive manner,” Arensman said. “A lot of the time at Grinnell it just turns into like, ‘Oh wow you have a five-page paper due tomorrow? I have a 12 page paper due tomorrow.’ Everybody just winds up more stressed and not feeling better.”

GSC, which is a fairly new student group, spent last semester thinking about ways to help the campus community as a whole. E-mails between the Outreach Committee came to the conclusion of having some sort of event with baked goods.

“We had been e-mailing back and forth [and] I was like, ‘I really like Bitching and Brownies … you might think it’s too vulgar,’” Arensman said. “So I [also suggested] Muffins and Moaning and Cookies and Commiseration, but Bitching and Brownies [won out.]”

This is just the beginning of many events that GSC is planning for the year. Though the group holds a lot of programming for Christians, such as Bible studies and worship, they want to hold events at which everyone feels welcome, such as Bitching and Brownies. They hope to do significant work with the Stonewall Resource Center (SRC) this year.

This weekend, GSC will be benefiting the entire campus at 10/10, a tradition that used to belong to the Grinnell College Christian Fellowship (GCCF), a student group that was recently disbanded.

“We’re doing the Friends of 10/10 … I have to run to Wal-Mart and get 1,200 bottles of water and like 50 boxes of graham crackers. We’re also helping the Frisbee team pass out pizzas or some other food product in Loose kitchen,” Arensman said. “I’m really glad that we’re keeping that going on campus … It’s an opportunity for anyone to help anyone.”

GSC is ready to include any volunteer who wants to join them in assisting the campus community this Saturday. Anyone interested in helping to hand out water bottles or graham crackers should email [arensman].

Grinnellians stressed out after the completion of this campus holiday are lucky to have Bitching and Brownies to look forward to during midsems week. Bitching and Brownies will likely take place just outside of Kistle Library and in the front tables at Burling.

“If you want any chocolate or to bitch a little bit, we will be present,” Arensman said.