It was a good deal all the way around - nobody was upset at any UA employees because of the weather, and the employees were probably pretty glad for it! Just goes to show: when things start to go south, smile and ask nicely. Good things tend to happen, more often than not. In my case, I got home with minimal delay (in a lousy seat, sure, but hey, who can be choosy in a case like that? Paid for coach, flew in coach.)