In my experience, they want a man who will say “yes, dear” to any request they give. 
I’m going to assume you’re asking about qualities in men, so:
A man as honest as I am.
A man as competent as I am.
A man as thoughtful as I am.
My understanding is that all those men are gay, though.
I feel distinctly smug. I have one of those. Sorry, Eva Luna, you can’t have him.
Aoplogies for the smugness and bragging.
No need to apologize. I had one for a while (OK, he wasn’t a musician, but he made up for it in other departments). Then he went off the Prozac and decided he should dump me; I already wrote a thread about it a few weeks ago.
I would never begrudge anyone else’s happiness, though, and I have high hopes for the future. In the meantime, however, I have no objections to sloppy seconds, so should you happen to acquire any additional guys meeting this description (brains & sense of humor are a must, BTW, and I prefer ages 30-35 or so), feel free to send them my way!
I want legs that never require shaving - without resorting to chemicals or hot wax.
I want dark chocolate, dark as a moonless night.
I want less freeway traffic when I’m in a hurry.
I want fat free cheese that tastes like actual cheese. Then you can grill it into a sandwich for me.
A second vote for a better compound miter saw.
I want a sailboat. Good lord, do I want a sailboat.
I want this workday to end.
I want my teenage ass back. I know what to do with it now.
I want a puppy. Not until I have a house with a yard – OK, I want those, then a puppy.
I want a nap.
I want more money.
That’s just for right now. It will change within 15 minutes. Sorry.
Hmm… what do I want?
[ul]
[li]a loving, supportive family[/li][li]someone who will love me for who I am, and not what I do[/li][li]the unconditional love and support of a lot of friends[/li][li]the kids at church to become attached to me[/li][li]someone who is funny, compassionate, gentle, a good cook, honest, trustworthy, loving, sweet, respectful, goofy, caring, understanding, thoughtful, etc.[/li][li]a big Chinese banquet meal[/li][li]chocolate[/li][li]kittens[/li][li]a brand new computer with LOTS of hard drive space[/li][li]more money[/li][li]comfy clothes (yes, like flannel PJs)[/li][/ul]
That’s all I can think of right now… probably more to come later.
F_X
Hmm… what do I want?
[ul]
[li]a loving, supportive family[/li][li]someone who will love me for who I am, and not what I do[/li][li]the unconditional love and support of a lot of friends[/li][li]the kids at church to become attached to me[/li][li]someone who is funny, compassionate, gentle, a good cook, honest, trustworthy, loving, sweet, respectful, goofy, caring, understanding, thoughtful, etc.[/li][li]a big Chinese banquet meal[/li][li]chocolate[/li][li]kittens[/li][li]a brand new computer with LOTS of hard drive space[/li][li]more money[/li][li]comfy clothes (yes, like flannel PJs)[/li][/ul]
That’s all I can think of right now… probably more to come later.
F_X
Generally speaking, women want the same things that men want. Obviously they look at things through a slightly different lens, but its all basically the same. Examine your own wants, astro and you will find the answer.
Of course, you will first have to unlearn the myriad of lies you were told when you were growing up about What Women Want™ 
What! No way man! Well let’s see…
So… Women want = I want
Flannel jammies and chocolate = the 22" Apple LCD flat screen display and the latest and greatest Thinkpad notebook PC.
A foot massage = giving superb foot massages in exchange for surprise female hugs and kisses
A kitten/puppy = new riding mower (but not in the same immediate proximity).
My own tropical island where I can serve as a benevolent dictator, be adored by the natives, and drink beer all day long = My own tropical island where I can serve as a benevolent dictator, be adored by the natives, and drink ice tea all day long.
Umm…maybe you’ve got something there. All I need now is to find woman with sore feet who wants a nap, likes chocolate, has a riding mower and her own tropical island. It’s all so clear now.
I’d also say that women basically want the same thing as men. To be loved, cared for, respected, pampered, and lots and lots of hot sex.
Oh yeah, and flannel jammies(I’ve asked my SO to have me buried in mine when I die).
~V
One of us literary geeks has to say it…
dominion.
My vote’s for loyalty.
To boil it down to the most basic component: to be happy.
everton is right.
<drool>
</drool>
Notice I left out the Apple part.
A man who…
Is sensitive, but not to the point of being annoying.
Is masculine, but not to the point of being annoying.
Is funny, but not the point of being annoying.
Is somewhat geeky, but not to the point of being annoying.
Is kind, but not a doormat.
Is romantic, but not mushy.
Is ambitious, but puts his real life above his career.
Has good hygiene.
Loves his parents, but knows where to draw the line in following their wishes as opposed to his.
Is artistic in some way.
Likes cats. Or at least tolerates cats.
Is okay with no dogs, at least in the house.
Would be a good father.
Is playful, but knows when to be serious.
I think that about sums it up…counts 13 out of 14…I’m a lucky girl.
I want adventure. But I don’t depend on anyone else for it. 
…I’m the only one who wants a harem?
I figured most women had some dream of keeping half of a fire department or something in the basement. This is an odd revelation.
Daowajan, it’s a great idea but for me, just the one male about the house is tiring enough.
Today’s wants:
A DVD player and lots of DVD’s.
A new computer, which I won’t have to share.
My own workout room.
A plug-in chemistry card for my graphics calculator.
Chem Office.
A better VCR.
Fluffy kittens.
Some more of those strawberries I bought from the Farmer’s Market last week and then gobbled down in less than an hour.
From my personal women’s caucus, the consensus is that they would like the complete subjugation of heterosexual men.
The cute and smart among them would be pleasure slaves/companions. The rest would be forced into doing the menial jobs.
I, of course, would be high commander of homosexuals and would take Alec Baldwin and Glenn Quinn as my body servants.
It would be a perfect world.