The beans "Ty" one on as they invade the filming locale of the hit ABC series, thanks to BATW Ambassador Ron and Stephanie Ege!

Hello, builders, lookie-loos, and those who like seeing something nice happen to someone who could really use it, and welcome to Altamonte Springs, Florida! Tonight the beans are sneaking behind the security tape to check out the on-site location of a taping of ABC's hit TV series "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition". If you've never seen the show, it's actually quite a cool concept: The nice production crew selects a family that really could use some home repairs, ships them out of town for a week, then swoop in with a massive crew and within a matter of days totally rebuild and refurbish their home. Lots of tears and hugs go around, and we can all feel like we've done something good with our lives before we move on to the next show on Sunday nights, which is of course Desperate Housewives. Sort of like cleansing your soul before delving into sin, I suppose.

Anyway, today the beans have come to Altamonte Spring, where a single mother and her five kids are about to get the home redecorating of a lifetime. Sadie Holmes Help Services, Inc. is a nonprofit service that collects clothing, food, and furniture for needy people in the area, and is ran by none other than Sadie herself. Her home/ops center for helping all these people was damaged in last year's hurricanes, so while Sadie and her family are away, a work crew of over 100 will come in and build her a new 5,000 square foot house. Nifty, no? The beans think this is absolutely wonderful - helping people is what it's all about, isn't it? The frijoles wanted to get up there and swing a hammer, too, but alas - there wasn't a can-sized hardhat available, so instead they watched - and applauded - from the sidelines.

Now, when you sneak onto a closed construction site/TV set, you expect to run into the occasional star, don't you? Well, the beans did, when they met up with Ed Sanders, a construction designer for the show. Ed was even nice enough to sign their lid for them - an actual celebrity autograph. Sure beats the time some kids "tagged" them with graffiti in Compton, doesn't it? Anyway, Ed is a great guy, so when you see him, be sure to tell him thank you for stopping to make the beans day. Another interesting side note: It seems that our new best buddy Ed here was formerly the host of the UK's version of "Fear Factor". Now, we're not asking for any preferential treatment here, but if someone was to help a certain can of frijoles win 50,000 British pounds on Fear Factor U.K., we know a food group that'd be most appreciative. And hey - our bean are more than willing to eat any sort of disgusting mass and swim through sewers to get it. Just don't ask us to watch any more Jane Austen movies - there's some things we just can't stomach.

And while touring the construction site, the beans also ran into the fabulously beautiful Tanya McQueen, one of the show's design team members. Tanya was also kind enough to pose with the beans, so she earns a special place in their little frijole hearts forever. Anyway, before the beans spend the rest of their allotted space fawning over Tanya (too late), let me tell you that in addition to being a celebrity and one heck of a nice person, she's the co-owner of design/decorator company "Tattered Hydrangea", where their specialty is finding already existing properties that others deem unworthy or lacking in certain style, layout or architectural integrity (i.e. no beans inside), and turning them into the "showplace" of the neighborhood. Pretty cool, eh? The beans spent a good half hour chatting up Tanya about decorating tips for their limited space inside and outside the can, and came away with some really sound advice...

...such as having the autograph of a lovely TV star on the outside of your label instantly accelerates your property value. Hey, it works for us. So here's what we know so far: This episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is supposedly scheduled to air on your local ABC station sometime this April. Be sure to set your TiVos now. And the next time somebody asks you to pitch in and help someone in need, why dontcha? It doesn't necessarily take a lot of money to make a huge difference in somebody's life. Although a little cash never hurt anyone. Now that they're off their soapbox, the beans want to thank Tanya, Ed, and the entire cast and crew of EM:HE for showing them around, and to Ron & Stephanie for jumping the security line for an up close look at what's happening. As for the beans, they're currently off having a custom-fit tool belt tailored for their tiny 11-inch waist. Being that small it won't hold many tools, but as long as it has room for their cell phone, camera, and some casino markers, they'll be all set.