As others have said, it's not just getting snowed in. My wife and I used to fly down to the French West Indies, and occasionally our baggage didn't make it with us. One airline had only 1 flight a week to the island we were on, and all we had with us was our carry-on luggage.

We carry all our necessities in our carry-on nowadays, which includes a change of outer clothes and a couple or more changes of underwear, shoes, medicine, toiletries, and whatever we'll need for at least a couple of days. A cell phone is a necessity when traveling these days, along with it's power cord, an extension cord, and plug converters if we're going to the French West Indies. I generally also take a netbook with WiFi and power cord, too.

In this weather, we'd have our winter coats if we were going to be on the East Coast or Europe. I'd hope for food at the airport.