When I ponder my own attempts at "inner spring cleaning," I think I do what most of us 20-somethings do when our parents plan to visit: clean just enough so that it's presentable / livable, but not enough that it's <i>really</i> clean. 

On the one hand, it means you (or really, I) have to keep coming back and cleaning again and again to keep things manageable. This means I'm constantly having to reflect on those things I've rather forget, which is probably good. On the other hand, each attempt at "light cleaning" means you're only putting a band-aid on the issue and not actually making any progress. 

(Okay, I think I've sufficiently killed the metaphor now.)