Assuming this is a general cause of victories turning to ashes, of trying to solve other problems with it... what to do? Should we disregard this feeling, and start a new project (have more kids/brain children)? Or try to find something that will be genuinely satisfying, and won't turn to ashes?
I don't know. But I think it might be more like this: 1. get the basics right 2. have fun.
1. basics
exercise, sleep, food
friendly, co-operative people, support/encouragement, help others and be helped
be factual (not emotional reasoning), discuss (see POVs), keep perspective
have a bigger philosophy: religion (Knuth and Brooks are religious), nature
2. fun
focus on the journey as enjoyable
don't see the result as a solution to *how you feel*
immediately go on to the next project
it's just for fun, not to redeem yourself or make everything alright
It's like - I only passed through sheer hard work, bluster and a tiny bit of cleverness. On reflection, I suspect that's pretty much how anyone gets successful at anything.
One difference with your description is that I was only rarely exhilarated through the journey - usually when showing my work to those outside the field; I was much more often plagued by self-doubt.