one of a number of folktales in Mules and Men that concern Brer animals and various creation myths. This story, explaining why the gator is colored the way that he is, begins with Brer Gator lounging in the sun, with white skin and coal-colored eyes. Brer Rabbit comes out of the bush in a hurry, and tracks mud all over Brer Gator’s albino skin. When Brer Gator gets mad, Brer Rabbit tells him to wait for a moment and he’ll show Brer Gator what real trouble is. Brer Gator agrees to this, and Brer Rabbit lights a fire all around Brer Gator. The smoke blackens Brer Gator’s skin, and reddens his eyes, and this is why alligators are colored the way that they are. “You Think I’m Gointer Pay You But I Ain’t” A Black man is employed in a lumberyard, but is too lazy to do his work. Whenever his employer comes by, he says “Klunk, Klunk, you think Ah’m workin’ but Ah ain’t.” When the Black man goes to collect his money, his employer says, “Clink, Clink you think I’m gointer pay you, but I ain’t.” Hoodoo Hoodoo, is a traditional spiritual practice that originated among enslaved people in North America, combining traditional African religious elements with those of Christianity. Hurston states that she chose New Orleans to study Hoodoo in the United States, as it is an area with a rich Hoodoo tradition that rivals Haiti or Africa. In Mules and Men, Hurston chronicles her experiences with seven different Hoodoo practitioners throughout New Orleans. Ritual to Get a Man Write the name of the man you want and his wife nine times on a small piece of paper and stick it in a lemon. Cut a hole in the stem of the lemon and pour gun powder into the hole. Wrap the lemon in salt, and bury in the married couple’s yard. The bloom end must be buried downward. The couple will split. This ritual is conducted under the supervision of Eulalia, a specialist in domestic hoodoo. It is performed for a local woman who wants to be with a married man, and is unhappy that he is in a relationship. She wants him to divorce his wife and contacts Eulalia to ensure that it happens. Initiation Ceremony Remain inside for five days, abstaining from sexual intercourse and not eating or drinking anything aside from water. Enter