I think you're right, to a point. I do know creative intellectuals who have found a simple life that pleases them, but as an outsider it always seems to come at

I think you're right, to a point. I do know creative intellectuals who have found a simple life that pleases them, but as an outsider it always seems to come at the cost of avoiding certain questions and abandoning certain goals. I don't judge them for it; in fact I envy them on occasion, but it's not for me. Nevertheless, it occurs to me that a truly intelligent person who is honestly optimising for "contentedness" (purposely choosing to avoid the more connotative "happiness" here) should learn to satisfy themselves with simple pleasures. People who don't do that are either not truly intelligent, not truly honest, or don't truly seek to live a contented life (and I'm one of them).