There isn't a simple dividing line between being awake and asleep. Our consciousness flows back and forth in a malleable fashion with there being different layers of alertness. Plus, you have to realize that the brain is comprised of several different regions of neurons that process their own sub-functions independently of the main function of the brain as a whole. So, when the brain attempts to awaken, one function can lag behind another creating a sort of fuzzy state of consciousness in which we perceive a blurring of the two realities.
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own - Bertrand Russell
