--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I guess I've been waiting so long I'm…" description: "\"“I guess I've been waiting so long I'm looking for perfection. That makes it tough.\" \"Waiting for the perfect love?\" \"No, even I know better than that...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/haruki-murakami-21_important-things_i-guess-i-ve-been-waiting-so-long-i-m-lo_72391.jpg" --- # I guess I've been waiting so long I'm looking for… ![“I guess I've been waiting so long I'm looking for perfection. That makes it tough." "Waiting for the perfect love?" "No, even I know better than that. I'm looking for selfishness. Perfect selfishness. Like, say I tell you I want to eat strawberry shortcake. And you stop everything you're doing and…” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/haruki-murakami-21_important-things_i-guess-i-ve-been-waiting-so-long-i-m-lo_72391.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/haruki-murakami-21_important-things_i-guess-i-ve-been-waiting-so-long-i-m-lo_72391.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/haruki-murakami-21_important-things_i-guess-i-ve-been-waiting-so-long-i-m-lo_72391.jpg) > ““I guess I've been waiting so long I'm looking for perfection. That makes it tough." "Waiting for the perfect love?" "No, even I know better than that. I'm looking for selfishness. Perfect selfishness. Like, say I tell you I want to eat strawberry shortcake. And you stop everything you're doing and run out and buy it for me. And you come back out of breath and get down on your knees and hold this strawberry shortcake out to me. And I say I don't want it anymore and throw it out the window. That's what I'm looking for." "I'm not sure that has anything to do with love," I said with amazement. "It does," she said. "You just don't know it. There are times in a girl's life when things like that are incredibly important." "Things like throwing strawberry shortcake out the window?" "Exactly. And when I do it, I want the man to apologize to me. 'Now I see, Midori. What a fool I've been! I should have known that you would lose your desire for strawberry shortcake. I have all the intelligence and sensitivity of a piece of donkey shit. To make it up to you, I'll go out and buy you something else. What would you like? Chocolate mousse? Cheesecake?' " "So then what?" "So then I'd give him all the love he deserves for what he's done." "Sounds crazy to me." "Well, to me, that's what love is. Not that anyone can understand me though." Midori gave her head a little shake against my shoulder. "For a certain kind of person, love begins from something tiny or silly. From something like that or it doesn't begin at all.”” [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker describes love as a desire for extreme, performative gestures that test devotion, suggesting that love can be proven through dramatic, often absurd acts rather than conventional affection. **In simple terms:** Love as a test of devotion through exaggerated gestures. Key Takeaway Love may be expressed through extreme, symbolic acts. Themes Power dynamics Romantic idealism Performative affection Self‑sacrifice Absurdity Mood conflicted ironic thoughtful Type dialogue philosophical narrative When to use this quote - A partner demanding grand gestures - A lover testing loyalty - A relationship where one seeks validation through extreme acts - A scenario where affection is measured by sacrifice Key Concepts Symbolic gestures Emotional validation Control Expectation Practical Applications - Designing relationship counseling that addresses performative expectations - Creating narratives that explore love as a power play Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to love someone without expecting a reward? - How can we differentiate genuine affection from manipulative testing? A Different Perspective Some argue love is best shown through everyday consistency, not theatrical displays. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chocolate mousse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chocolate-mousse/) [Important things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-things/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Perfect love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfect-love/) [Strawberry shortcake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strawberry-shortcake/) ## Related quotes > [“I made up my mind I was going to find someone who would love me unconditionally three hundred and sixty five days a year,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-made-up-my-mind-i-was-going-to-find-someone-who-would-love-me/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“No, even I know better than that. I’m looking for selfishness. Perfect selfishness. Like, say I tell you I want to eat strawberry shortcake.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/no-even-i-know-better-than-that-i-m-looking-for-selfishness-perfect/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“It’s true I’ve got a cold streak. I recognize that. But if they—my father and mother—had loved me a little more, I would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-s-true-i-ve-got-a-cold-streak-i-recognize-that-but-if-they-my/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I guess I've been waiting so long I'm looking for perfection. That makes it tough." "Waiting for perfect love?" "No, even I know better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-guess-i-ve-been-waiting-so-long-i-m-looking-for-perfection-that-2/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [My favourite pudding is a toss-up between cheesecake - proper, New York cheesecake - and apple crumble and custard. Custard is very important, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hiddleston/my-favourite-pudding-is-a-toss-up-between-cheesecake-proper-new-york/) [Tom Hiddleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hiddleston/) > [I love chocolate mousse, that's probably my favorite. I'm a big strawberry shortcake fan as well. I'm not mad at classic vanilla either. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mchale/i-love-chocolate-mousse-that-s-probably-my-favorite-i-m-a-big/) [Kevin McHale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mchale/) > [My favourite dish is my chocolate mousse. It's like heaven on earth. It's the best chocolate mousse that you could ever imagine. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/my-favourite-dish-is-my-chocolate-mousse-it-s-like-heaven-on-earth-it/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) > [“Time to cut the cake, newlyweds." Caroline ushers us over to the sweet little two-tier cake, round and covered in white fondant with what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-ballis/time-to-cut-the-cake-newlyweds-caroline-ushers-us-over-to-the-sweet/) [Stacey Ballis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-ballis/) > [“Caroline made a steamed fig pudding with brandy hard sauce. Hedy and Jacob brought a platter of dense, moist gingerbread squares studded with chunks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-ballis/caroline-made-a-steamed-fig-pudding-with-brandy-hard-sauce-hedy-and/) [Stacey Ballis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-ballis/) > [“Cream, circus lions, chocolate mousse, you . . .” Lemon said as we continued down the hallway. “What?” “Oh, don’t mind me. I was just listing things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sariah-wilson/cream-circus-lions-chocolate-mousse-you-lemon-said-as-we-continued/) [Sariah Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sariah-wilson/) > [The stubby French painter Toulouse-Lautrec supposedly invented chocolate mousse - I find that rather hard to believe, but there you have it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/the-stubby-french-painter-toulouse-lautrec-supposedly-invented/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [A smile flickered across Coral’s face. “Have you ever noticed that once you have had a taste of certain sweets—raspberry trifle is my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hoyt/a-smile-flickered-across-coral-s-face-have-you-ever-noticed-that-once/) [Elizabeth Hoyt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hoyt/) > [Because of media hype and woefully inadequate information, too many people nowadays are deathly afraid of their food, and what does fear of food…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/because-of-media-hype-and-woefully-inadequate-information-too-many/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [“The caneton took long enough that by the time it showed up, I was hungry again. It was two ducks, actually, tiny and crisp…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-caneton-took-long-enough-that-by-the-time-it-showed-up-i-was/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My life just got taken over by my cooking. If you don't have any discipline, which I don't, you can make 10 gallons of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duff-goldman/my-life-just-got-taken-over-by-my-cooking-if-you-don-t-have-any/) [Duff Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duff-goldman/) ## More by Haruki Murakami > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. 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Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Eleven o'clock had come and gone. I had to find a way to bring this conversation to a successful conclusion and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/eleven-o-clock-had-come-and-gone-i-had-to-find-a-way-to-bring-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Some people get a kick out of reading railway timetables and that's all they do all day. Some people make huge model boats out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/some-people-get-a-kick-out-of-reading-railway-timetables-and-that-s/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“You let something out of the bag before yourself knew what it was all about”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-let-something-out-of-the-bag-before-yourself-knew-what-it-was-all/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) [Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More Chocolate mousse quotes > [“I made up my mind I was going to find someone who would love me unconditionally three hundred and sixty five days a year,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-made-up-my-mind-i-was-going-to-find-someone-who-would-love-me/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“The caneton took long enough that by the time it showed up, I was hungry again. It was two ducks, actually, tiny and crisp…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-caneton-took-long-enough-that-by-the-time-it-showed-up-i-was/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Because of media hype and woefully inadequate information, too many people nowadays are deathly afraid of their food, and what does fear of food…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/because-of-media-hype-and-woefully-inadequate-information-too-many/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [A smile flickered across Coral’s face. “Have you ever noticed that once you have had a taste of certain sweets—raspberry trifle is my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hoyt/a-smile-flickered-across-coral-s-face-have-you-ever-noticed-that-once/) [Elizabeth Hoyt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hoyt/) > [The stubby French painter Toulouse-Lautrec supposedly invented chocolate mousse - I find that rather hard to believe, but there you have it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/the-stubby-french-painter-toulouse-lautrec-supposedly-invented/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [“Cream, circus lions, chocolate mousse, you . . .” Lemon said as we continued down the hallway. “What?” “Oh, don’t mind me. I was just listing things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sariah-wilson/cream-circus-lions-chocolate-mousse-you-lemon-said-as-we-continued/) [Sariah Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sariah-wilson/) > [“Caroline made a steamed fig pudding with brandy hard sauce. Hedy and Jacob brought a platter of dense, moist gingerbread squares studded with chunks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-ballis/caroline-made-a-steamed-fig-pudding-with-brandy-hard-sauce-hedy-and/) [Stacey Ballis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-ballis/) > [“Time to cut the cake, newlyweds." Caroline ushers us over to the sweet little two-tier cake, round and covered in white fondant with what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-ballis/time-to-cut-the-cake-newlyweds-caroline-ushers-us-over-to-the-sweet/) [Stacey Ballis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-ballis/) > [My favourite dish is my chocolate mousse. It's like heaven on earth. 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But if they—my father and mother—had loved me a little more, I would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-s-true-i-ve-got-a-cold-streak-i-recognize-that-but-if-they-my/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [My favourite pudding is a toss-up between cheesecake - proper, New York cheesecake - and apple crumble and custard. Custard is very important, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hiddleston/my-favourite-pudding-is-a-toss-up-between-cheesecake-proper-new-york/) [Tom Hiddleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hiddleston/) > [My life just got taken over by my cooking. 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But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amaury-guichon/there-is-the-fun-and-technical-yet-more-decoration-purpose-aspect-of/) [Amaury Guichon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amaury-guichon/) [Browse all 18 Chocolate mousse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chocolate-mousse/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I guess I've been waiting so long I'm looking for perfection. That makes it tough.\" \"Waiting for the perfect love?\" \"No, even I know better than that. I'm looking for selfishness. Perfect selfishness. Like, say I tell you I want to eat strawberry shortcake. And you stop everything you're doing and run out and buy it for me. And you come back out of breath and get down on your knees and hold this strawberry shortcake out to me. And I say I don't want it anymore and throw it out the window. That's what I'm looking for.\" \"I'm not sure that has anything to do with love,\" I said with amazement. \"It does,\" she said. \"You just don't know it. There are times in a girl's life when things like that are incredibly important.\" \"Things like throwing strawberry shortcake out the window?\" \"Exactly. And when I do it, I want the man to apologize to me. 'Now I see, Midori. What a fool I've been! I should have known that you would lose your desire for strawberry shortcake. I have all the intelligence and sensitivity of a piece of donkey shit. To make it up to you, I'll go out and buy you something else. What would you like? Chocolate mousse? Cheesecake?' \" \"So then what?\" \"So then I'd give him all the love he deserves for what he's done.\" \"Sounds crazy to me.\" \"Well, to me, that's what love is. Not that anyone can understand me though.\" Midori gave her head a little shake against my shoulder. \"For a certain kind of person, love begins from something tiny or silly. 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