My friend and I used to have a code name for when I did this. It was “elephant clouds.” She would get frustrated with me and one day asked why I always think the way I do. I used the analogy of seeing pictures or objects in the clouds —- you know how clouds can bunch together and look like a dragon, or a smiley face, or a gnome, or an elephant, etc? But everyone knows there isn’t an elephant in the clouds — it’s just an illusion and will morph back into “just a puffball” as the wind changes. Sometimes I “see” elephant clouds in my interactions with other people. Their behavior/words/tone of voice/facial expression/whatever collect in such a way that I see things that are illusionary. My brain tries to create a picture of the situation using ambiguous information, just like it does when we stare up at the clouds.