Mountain...I'm sort of like you when it comes to having my house in order before enjoying things I like doing that aren't considered housework. My SIL and MIL would say my house is always clean....what it is is orderly. I have a place for everything and that makes it easy to 'appear' clean. If you run your fingers across some of the surfaces you'd find dust...this old house emits dust like crazy downstairs...not so much upstairs...that's weird.
Right now I have to do ironing...I would rather take a beating than iron and it will pile up until I can't ignore it anymore. So, that's tonight's project. Tomorrow I'll mop the floors...another job that I hate...mainly because it's so hard on my back...then I have to wax the dining room and living room floor.
I was a terrible house keeper when I was younger...cluter didn't bother me...but, it does now in a big way. I call it being anal on my part. But, I just like how my home looks when it's in order.
This past Thanksgiving my son was showing his girlfriend a huge wall shelf unit with all my what-nots and books all neatly arranged and said, "Now you see who I get my anal neatness from." I THINK he was bragging...LOL.