The expression ‘Don’t upset the apple cart’ means ‘Don’t cause trouble by spoiling someone’s plans’ If you think that someone is going to do something to stop things running smoothly, tell them not to upset the apple cart. Then they might think about the consequences of what they were about to do. Listen to these two conversations. Penny is talking to her friend Rose, and Jon is talking to Len, the manager of the amateur local football team that Jon plays for.
Conversation 1
Penny: Jenny called me last night. All the plans for our Australia trip are finalised: air and train tickets, and hotels booked. We're lucky to have a friend like Jenny who likes organising things. She's worked hard to get all this in place.
Rose: That's what I was going to talk to you about. I don't want to spend five days in Sydney. That's too long. We live in a city and I don't want to spend so much of my holiday in another city. We should spend more time in the Blue Mountains away from streets and buildings.
Penny: Why are you saying that now? You were there when the four of us agreed on the itinerary. We all agreed on the schedule.
Rose: Well, I've been thinking things over. We shouldn't spend so much time in a city. I'll have a word with the others and Jenny can change the bookings.
Penny: I think it's very unfair of you to upset the apple cart now.
Rose: Why?
Penny: Because we all agreed and Jenny has done all the reservations. We are going in ten days’ time. Making changes would upset the apple cart, and upset Jenny as well. Besides, it’ll be much colder in the mountains, so we’ll have to pack much more. It’s also hard to judge! We don’t want to overpack – remember last time when we all ended up with stuff we didn’t unpack, let alone wear?
Conversation 2
Jon: Why are you changing the line-up for this coming Saturday? I don't understand. We've won the last four games with this present line-up. I don't think you should upset the apple cart. We are all playing at our best in these positions.
Len: I want to move Chris out of defence. He's our newest player and I haven't worked out where his strengths are yet. I want to try him out somewhere else.
Jon: But he played brilliantly in defence in our last match. He hasn't said anything to me about wanting to play in another position. I think you should leave the team as it is for the moment. We are all playing to our individual strengths, and I don't feel that anyone should be moved.
Len: It isn't good for the team to be so static. Mixing it up gives us challenge and stops us all taking things for granted.
Jon: How can we be taking things for granted when we're getting the results we've been getting lately? The Number Crunchers on Saturday will be a tough team to beat. They've had a fantastic run this season, just like we have.
Len: I am aware of that. I don't think changing Chris to another position will affect things that much.
Jon: You’re wrong! It would really upset the apple cart and we don't want to do that at this stage of the season.
Len: OK. I'll take your comments on board. I haven't made up my mind yet. I'll talk to you again on Thursday after training. Will you be able to stay for half an hour when we've finished and we can have another chat?