It’s December, so in yearbook land, that means one thing: DEADLINE! The monster deadline. The 100+ pages due before the final bell rings to release us for the winter break. We know we’re not the only ones in the whirl of deadline craziness, but we’ve developed a recipe that leads to surefire success when it comes to the nerve collision that takes place when you’re responsible for a million projects that require the assistance of hundreds of others.

Want to know our secrets? Read on:

5. The fifth secret to Deadline Dreaminess: Your Handy Dandy Mac. Okay, a non-Mac could work, maybe, in a different world, we think. We only speak Mac though, so yeah. Go Mac. You save our lives.

4. The fourth secret to Deadline Dreaminess: Coffee. Preferably Starbucks. (Remember get 12 and the next one’s free!) Energy drinks are NOT coffee. DO. NOT. USE. ENERGY. DRINKS.

3. The third secret to Deadline Dreaminess: A Mascot. We prefer penguins. This is Lenore. Enough Said.

2. The second secret to Deadline Dreaminess (brought to you by alliteration): CHOCOLATE. Any kind. Always.

And finally, the No. 1 secret to Deadline Dreaminess….and this one is our super secret. We didn’t understand until this year how amazing, wonderful, fantastic, incredible stress relieving this is. It’s truly changed our lives…..

PLAY-DOH. It’s cheap, it’s fun, it’s easy to clean up. You can create a world with Play-Doh or just hold it or punch it or roll it or press it…whatever. Doesn’t matter. Play-Doh is the Deadline Dreaminess Miracle Worker. Get some now.