Joel Barish

What a loss to spend that much time with someone, only to find out that she's a stranger.

This is the day we met. You were down by the surf. I couldjust make you out in the distance. I remember being drawn to you even then. I thought, ''Wow, how odd. I'm drawn to someone's back.''

— You're not a stalker or anything, right?
— I'm not a stalker. You're the one that talked to me. Remember?
— That is the oldest trick in the stalker book.
— Really? There's a stalker book? Okay. I gotta read that one.

Why do I fall in love with every woman I see who shows me the least bit of attention?

— You don't tell me things, Joel. I'm an open book. I tell you everything. Every damn embarrassing thing. You don't trust me.
— You don't have to be afraid of silence, Clementine. Constantly talking isn't necessarily communicating.
— I don't do that. I want to know you. I don't constantly talk. Jesus. People have to share things. That's what intimacy is. I'm really pissed that you said that to me.
— I'm sorry. I just don't have anything very interesting about my life.

— Wait.
— What?
— I don't know. Just wait. Just wait.
— What do you want, Joel?
— I don't know. I want you to wait for... just a while.

I still thought you were gonna save my life, even after that.

Sand is overrated. It's just tiny little rocks.

Are we like those poor couples... you feel sorry for in restaurants? Are we the dining dead? I can't stand the idea of us being a couple people think that about.

Please let me keep this memory. Just this one. <...> I wanna call it off. I'll give you a sign. I wanna call it off! Can you hear me? I don't want this anymore!

— What if it breaks?
— ''What if'? Do you really care right now?

Oh, man. I can't remember anything without you.

— It's a pretty name, though. It really is nice. It means "merciful", right? Clemency?
— Yeah. Although it hardly fits. I'm a vindictive little bitch, truth be told.

Clem! Can you hear me? By morning you'll be gone! The perfect ending to this piece-of-shit story!

— I wish you'd stayed.
— I wish I'd stayed too. Now I wish I'd stayed. I wish I'd done a lot of things. Oh, God, I wish I had... I wish I'd stayed. I do.

— I'm not a concept, Joel. I'm just a fucked-up girl who is looking for my own peace of mind. I'm not perfect.
— I can't think of anything I don't like about you right now.
— But you will. You will think of things. And I'll get bored with you and feel trapped because that's what happens with me.
— Okay.
— Okay.