Local news: A chicken swap and a pumpkin cannon

So, I don't even have a backyard, but I was still really excited to discover the Hudson Valley Chickens Yahoo Group. What's more, the group is holding a chicken swap next week! Members and others are invited to bring their breeds and buy, trade and sell: chickens! I'm sure this was very common in days of yore (that's what county fairs and rodeos originated, as right?). But this modern-day version seems to also be about community and education.

What could be cooler than a chicken swap? A pumpkin cannon that launches those babies almost a mile! "Every time we shoot it, it's just as great as the first time," Gill says.

Lawmakers get a fancy farm-fresh feast for New York Farm Day. Some say it's gluttonous in hard times, Sen. Kirsten Gillebrand says it's meant to show lawmakers why they should support local agriculture.