First recorded 50 years ago, Peter Paul and Mary's Puff the Magic Dragon has a rather sad ending: Puff 'sadly slips into his cave' while little Jackie Paper grows up and puts his childhood behind him. But in 2007, Peter Yarrow published a book, Puff, the Magic Dragon, in which the classic song remains the same, but whose illustrations give us a new glimpse into Puff's future. Here is Mr. Yarrow, performing the song with his daughter Bethany at Woodstock's Bearsville Theatre, in '07. [more inside]
posted by zarq on Jan 27, 2012 - 49 comments

Photographer Irna Werning's project, 'Back to the Future' recreates classic childhood snapshots 20-40 years later, using the same settings, subjects, and clothing. Zefrank's Young Me Now Me (previously) is a much more extensive crowdsourced version of the same concept. (via BB. One photo very slightly NSFW)
posted by schmod on Feb 15, 2011 - 15 comments

Long before becoming a national treasure and celebrity Twitter addict the 16 year old Stephen Fry sent a letter to his future self, to which he has now responded, in a letter first published in the 25th birthday edition of Gay Times.
posted by Artw on Apr 30, 2009 - 36 comments

Scans from On Becoming a Woman by Harold Shryock, M.A., M.D. (1906-2004).
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane on Apr 7, 2007 - 24 comments

Sowing One's Wild Oats And Postponing Last Straws: Some things never change the world over and the gist of this amusing language lesson (be sure to listen to the sountrack too) seems familiar and even easy to guess. However, different cultures allow for different rates of growing up - and out of things. Regarding the sowing of wild oats, is the West really the most lenient and generous, in terms of age-limits? What part does religion play? In other words, what's the maximum you can get away with nowadays? At a pinch, I'd say Southern European Catholic countries will extend a woman's visa till she's 35 and a man's till he's 40 but certain *cough* other cultures seem to be even more favourable towards eternal adolescence.
posted by MiguelCardoso on Jan 31, 2004 - 18 comments