Nice example. A good attempt with an analogy. But, as with any analogy there are limitations and certain things get tricky.

1. “we tend to analyse our own homes from the viewpoint of our guests”.

here’s a tricky point. When Alan cooper talks about user’s mental model and developers model, he talks about how developers try to project their own understanding in to the interface. The difference is about what we think is good about the users and what actually is good. Therefore, the design has to be data/ observation driven. But it’s true one can have a good starting point by at least starting to think about users. Besides, there have been those incidents when I go to someone’s place for lunch/dinner and the ‘aunty’ would keep pouring in curry. They think making people overeat is a sign of good host.

2. “Consistently engaging guests with variety”
I am not sure about this. There are guests who come once in a few years and then there are those who come regularly (weekly). The strategy would be different for both. As per analogy- A novice user, intermediate and expert user. I think, variety might excite a novice user but also overwhelm. But for a intermediate or expert user, its the ease and swiftness of task completion that would satisfy. For a guest who comes weekly, surprises might not be the best way. In fact, it would be the sense of familiarity and belongingness that would be satisfying.

And please keep them coming more, the articles. I think as designers we must engage in public forums to communicate what lies in the realm of design. so, keep it up.