Henry Thoreau talked about this in Walden [1]. He built and lived in a hut by Walden lake for 2 years around 1900. There was a Irish family or such like that lived near by. The man he spoke to served him coffee, a luxury of the day, but had to work all hours to afford it. Walden had none of the luxuries but lived a more stress free life.

  [1]: https://www.walden.org/Thoreau/