How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
Quote #1
JOEL: Random thoughts for Valentine's Day. Today is a holiday invented by greeting card companies... to make people feel like crap.
We're not disagreeing that Valentine's Day was created for commercial purposes, but it's a bit cynical to think it's purposely making people feel bad. We don't think there's anything wrong with a dinner for one followed by a Nicholas Sparks movie. But seriously, Joel's thoughts here pretty clearly reveal how he's feeling about love and relationships at this point in the movie.
Quote #2
JOEL: Sand is overrated. It's just tiny little rocks.
Okay, sand does seem to get everywhere after a trip to the beach, but isn't it still fun? Joel may be right, but that doesn't mean thinking of sand as merely a smaller form of something hard and boring like rocks isn't really depressing. What about sand castles? Or sand art? You can't make that out of pebbles.
Quote #3
JOEL: I could die right now, Clem. I'm just... happy. I've never felt that before.
CLEMENTINE: Mmm.
JOEL: I'm just exactly... where I wanna be.
Joel and Clem are lying together on the ice when Joel experiences this moment of bliss. It's not complicated: he's just very happy, in a contented sort of way. This is the moment when he realizes that getting rid of all of the bad memories is not worth losing all the good ones. Will he ever get to experience happiness like this again?