--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Everything has taken on a strange…" description: "\"“Everything has taken on a strange, distant quality - the sounds of running and shouting outside get warped and weird like they're being filtered throu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/790/lauren-oliver-109_alex-sheathes_everything-has-taken-on-a-strange-distan_3082326.png" --- # Everything has taken on a strange, distant quality - the… ![“Everything has taken on a strange, distant quality - the sounds of running and shouting outside get warped and weird like they're being filtered through water, and Alex looks miles away. I start to think I might be dreaming, or about to pass out. And then I decide I'm definitely dreaming, because…” quote by Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/790/lauren-oliver-109_alex-sheathes_everything-has-taken-on-a-strange-distan_3082326.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/790/lauren-oliver-109_alex-sheathes_everything-has-taken-on-a-strange-distan_3082326.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/790/lauren-oliver-109_alex-sheathes_everything-has-taken-on-a-strange-distan_3082326.png) > ““Everything has taken on a strange, distant quality - the sounds of running and shouting outside get warped and weird like they're being filtered through water, and Alex looks miles away. I start to think I might be dreaming, or about to pass out. And then I decide I'm definitely dreaming, because as I'm watching, Alex starts peeling his shirt off over his head.”” [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator feels detached from reality, perceiving the world as filtered and surreal, questioning consciousness. **In simple terms:** Reality feels distant and dreamlike. Key Takeaway Recognize moments of disorientation and ground yourself. Themes perception reality disorientation Mood confused surreal Type narrative descriptive When to use this quote - nighttime city walk - intense stress - hallucination - creative writing Key Concepts psychology sensory distortion Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate dream from reality? - What triggers this sense of detachment? A Different Perspective The description may be exaggerated for artistic effect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alex sheathes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alex-sheathes/) [Dreaming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreaming/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Lauren-oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lauren-oliver/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [“I feel another stab of jealousy, watching Alex watching her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-feel-another-stab-of-jealousy-watching-alex-watching-her/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“He has left nothing except for a note, which I find neatly folded under one of my sneakers. The Story of Solomon is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/he-has-left-nothing-except-for-a-note-which-i-find-neatly-folded/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“This is one symptom of the deliria no one ever tells you about: Apparently the disease turns you into a world-class liar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-one-symptom-of-the-deliria-no-one-ever-tells-you-about/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [My father was aloof, very strange and very distant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-horowitz/my-father-was-aloof-very-strange-and-very-distant/) [Anthony Horowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-horowitz/) > [“Instead they dream of furniture Of buying a new hat Of owning matching silverware Could you imagine that? Yes there are places in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-clayton/instead-they-dream-of-furniture-of-buying-a-new-hat-of-owning/) [Dallas Clayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-clayton/) > [“Forgetting who you are and where you are and if you're there. Getting lost in the thought that you might be imagining everything, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/forgetting-who-you-are-and-where-you-are-and-if-you-re-there-getting/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [Do you really think you are alone when you are dreaming? Are you counting on your strength when the magic of dreams take you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruben-papian/do-you-really-think-you-are-alone-when-you-are-dreaming-are-you-2/) [Ruben Papian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruben-papian/) > [I try to live instinctively. And I guess I've always enjoyed living in a fantasy world, daydreaming. I really do think that dreaming and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-duval/i-try-to-live-instinctively-and-i-guess-i-ve-always-enjoyed-living-in/) [James Duval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-duval/) > [I really do think that dreaming and fantasies are very important to the human psyche and the soul. That's why I want to act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-duval/i-really-do-think-that-dreaming-and-fantasies-are-very-important-to/) [James Duval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-duval/) > [“At no point in this did Frank think he was dreaming, probably because he seldom remembered dreams, or paid attention to them even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/at-no-point-in-this-did-frank-think-he-was-dreaming-probably-because/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [“Forget dice rolling or boxes of chocolates as metaphors for life. Think of yourself as a dreaming robot on autopilot, and you'll be much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-laszlo-barabasi/forget-dice-rolling-or-boxes-of-chocolates-as-metaphors-for-life/) Albert-Laszlo Barabasi > [Do you really think you are alone when you are dreaming? Are you counting on your strength when the magic of dreams takes you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruben-papian/do-you-really-think-you-are-alone-when-you-are-dreaming-are-you/) [Ruben Papian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruben-papian/) > [“In my moments of fevered consciousness I think I am dreaming. Am I really in this warm bed in this clean room? Am I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-baker-kline/in-my-moments-of-fevered-consciousness-i-think-i-am-dreaming-am-i/) [Christina Baker Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-baker-kline/) ## More by Lauren Oliver > [“My aunt Carol hasn’t heard her say a word in the whole six years and three months of Grace’s life—not a single syllable. Carol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/my-aunt-carol-hasn-t-heard-her-say-a-word-in-the-whole-six-years-and/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [This is what happens when you try to help people. You get screwed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-what-happens-when-you-try-to-help-people-you-get-screwed/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [We'll walk together holding hands, and kiss in broad daylight, and love each other as much as we want to, and no one will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/we-ll-walk-together-holding-hands-and-kiss-in-broad-daylight-and-love/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“It seem absurd to me that they don't know, haven't felt any change or tremor, even as my life has been completely turned upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-seem-absurd-to-me-that-they-don-t-know-haven-t-felt-any-change-or/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“At least when I'm sleeping I can dream myself back to Alex, can dream myself into a different world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/at-least-when-i-m-sleeping-i-can-dream-myself-back-to-alex-can-dream/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [People are like ants: Just a few of them give all the orders. And most of them spend their lives getting squashed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/people-are-like-ants-just-a-few-of-them-give-all-the-orders-and-most/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Summer explodes into Portland. In early June the heat was there but not the color--the green were still pale and tentative, the morning had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/summer-explodes-into-portland-in-early-june-the-heat-was-there-but/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Mistake, mistake, mistake. A strange word: stinging, somehow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/mistake-mistake-mistake-a-strange-word-stinging-somehow/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [I wonder if it's ever really possible to know the truth about someone else, or if the best we can do is just stumble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-wonder-if-it-s-ever-really-possible-to-know-the-truth-about-someone/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“Julian is somewhere among those lights, in that blur of people and buildings. I wonder whether he's scared. I wonder whether he's thinking of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/julian-is-somewhere-among-those-lights-in-that-blur-of-people-and/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [A room full of words that are nearly the truth but not quite, each note fluttering off the steam of its rose like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/a-room-full-of-words-that-are-nearly-the-truth-but-not-quite-each/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“She’s the kind of person who makes you feel drunk just by being around her, like suddenly the world’s edges are dulled and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/she-s-the-kind-of-person-who-makes-you-feel-drunk-just-by-being/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“Stop!” His voice rings out sharply, hard as a slap. He releases me and I stumble backward. “Alex is dead, do you hear me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/stop-his-voice-rings-out-sharply-hard-as-a-slap-he-releases-me-and-i/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [..in that moment i realize how much i love the little everyday routines of my life..the details that are my life's special pattern, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/in-that-moment-i-realize-how-much-i-love-the-little-everyday-routines/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“You can't judge a book by its steel-toed combat boots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/you-can-t-judge-a-book-by-its-steel-toed-combat-boots/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) [Explore all 1,181 Lauren Oliver quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## More Alex sheathes quotes > [How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrett-browning/how-do-i-love-thee-let-me-count-the-ways-i-love-thee-to-the-depth-and/) [Elizabeth Barrett Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrett-browning/) > [“I’m frightened. This is how it starts. Even if he is cured, even if he is safe—the fact is, I’m not safe, and this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-m-frightened-this-is-how-it-starts-even-if-he-is-cured-even-if-he/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Everywhere he touches is fire. My whole body is burning up, the two of us becoming twin points of the same bright white flame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/everywhere-he-touches-is-fire-my-whole-body-is-burning-up-the-two-of/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“When I'm running, there's always this split second when the pain is ripping through me and I can hardly breathe and all I see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/when-i-m-running-there-s-always-this-split-second-when-the-pain-is/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [And how she looked at me like I could save her from everything bad in he world. This was my secret: she was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/and-how-she-looked-at-me-like-i-could-save-her-from-everything-bad-in/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [His eyes are the color of honey. These are the eyes I remember from my dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/his-eyes-are-the-color-of-honey-these-are-the-eyes-i-remember-from-my/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [But how could anyone who's ever seen a summer - big explosion of green and skies lit up electric with splashy sunsets, a riot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/but-how-could-anyone-who-s-ever-seen-a-summer-big-explosion-of-green/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“Love, the deadliest of all deadly things. It kills you. Alex. When you have it. Alex. And when you don't. Alex.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/love-the-deadliest-of-all-deadly-things-it-kills-you-alex-when-you/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“You don’t have to be worried, okay? You don’t have to be scared.” His voice is twinkling again. “I’m not flirting with you.” Embarrassment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/you-don-t-have-to-be-worried-okay-you-don-t-have-to-be-scared-his/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“I want to apologize to you,” she says calmly. “Oh yeah? For what?” I don’t have time for this. We don’t have time for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-want-to-apologize-to-you-she-says-calmly-oh-yeah-for-what-i-don-t/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“I told you," he whispers back. I can feel his breath just tickling the space behind my ear, making my hair prick up on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-told-you-he-whispers-back-i-can-feel-his-breath-just-tickling-the/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“That was the first time my world exploded. The second time my world exploded, it was also because of a word. A word that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/that-was-the-first-time-my-world-exploded-the-second-time-my-world/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [A leopard doesn't change his spots just because you bring him in from the jungle and try to housebreak him and turn him into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lincoln-rockwell/a-leopard-doesn-t-change-his-spots-just-because-you-bring-him-in-from/) [George Lincoln Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lincoln-rockwell/) > [“It was craziness. Amor deliria nervosa. The deadliest of all deadly things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-was-craziness-amor-deliria-nervosa-the-deadliest-of-all-deadly/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) [Browse all 15 Alex sheathes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alex-sheathes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Everything has taken on a strange, distant quality - the sounds of running and shouting outside get warped and weird like they're being filtered through water, and Alex looks miles away. I start to think I might be dreaming, or about to pass out. 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