January Through March 19, 1957

The Pregnancy: Father To Be

Carrying low and being a thin person, the added weight of the baby and its outward push on the flesh of Marsha’s once tight, concave abdomen caused a constantly uncomfortable feeling. She often had cramps in both legs and near continual heartburn that gave rise to the “bubbea-meisseh” (old wives tale) that heartburn in a pregnant woman meant the baby will be born with an overabundance of hair. And, indeed, to quote her cousin, Marsha sometimes did feel like, “some kind’a ugly, grotesque, misformed string-bean”

On the other hand, though, other than the general discomfort of being pregnant, her clear complexion clearer than ever, her lustrous hair more lustrous than ever, always an attractive girl, in the mid and later months of pregnancy, Marsha Lipensky had become radiantly beautiful and, other than the discomfort, she loved being pregnant and loved showing she was pregnant.

Mitchell rationalized the looks he received from other men – notably those of older men – as jealousy because it was he that had the good fortune to be intimate with this young woman. It was his penis and his semen that had impregnated this beautiful, young woman and he walked a bit taller and a bit prouder whenever he and Marsha were out together.

Regarding sex: Between times of anger or, “Mitchie, not tonight, I’m so tired!” Or,  not that he  always believed her,  “I have terrible heartburn!” Or: “Stomachache!” Or: ”Backache!” Or, hardly ever believing her,  “I’ve such a headache!” Sex became possibly, maybe, a once a week event and actually most days ended with Marsha – because she needed it – and Mitchell – because he liked it – each, drinking a quarter-glass of water with, “plop-plop, fizz-fizz,” two ‘Alka-Seltzers’, “Urrrppp!” belching, turning their backs to each other...

“’nite, baby.”  

“Good night, Mitchell.”

...the two fall asleep.

Since the age of nine, Mitchell had, in his opinion, an above average interest in sex, and though he understood why, he considered this possibly, once a week, maybe, thing to be a deprivation.

During the long days and nights between intercourse, he built up a mental and physical ‘head of steam’ and when they did do ‘it’, because her breasts hurt and her stomach was distended, intercourse became not much more than inserting himself, moving inward and outward a number of times and ejaculating within seconds. Knowing he was not satisfying his wife, or actually, beyond the physical relief, himself, aggravated Mitchell and put him on the defensive and this, of course, added to the tension.

Very... Most often, Marsha really did not feel well or was up to having intercourse.  But on the rare occasion that she felt well enough and was in the mood, she did feel the need for sexual gratification, but because of her husband’s premature ejaculation problem – due to the rarity of intercourse – she became frustrated with their lovemaking and, often unwilling to work herself into a state of unfulfilled desire, she would find an excuse to delay intercourse even longer – exacerbating Mitchell’s problem – forming patterns that added to both Marsha and Mitchell’s frustration, which caused more tension

Also, beyond a growing financial problem, there was always Rhea and Myra and “Mom.”