Neutral and handbrake in the civic just like I was taught in the motherland

In the other car it depends how long Im there and if the sube tranny is doing that weird throbbing thing that goes away in N.... Got to have some sort of brake on though (foot or hand) in case you get rear ended...

I was reading that Mazda are working on the diesels for over here. The low fuel quality causing issues for the emissions. There was even talk somewhere that they may bring them into the US but not Canada.

As for transmissions, auto for my daily (read traffic jam) driver and standard for my 7 and the Cossie.

Driving automatic in the snow scares me. No feel of the road.

Eh? You apply gas in an automatic in exactly the same way as you do in a manual. Other than changing gear when you wish to, how does driving an automatic in the snow differ from driving a manual in the snow?

You answered your own question there AC.

Granted, but I fail to see how that affects "feel" and, with autos, one can use the first few gears "manually".

Well on decel there is a difference, most auto's freewheel, sort of.