manual or automatic transmission

I am looking to buy a '95 tp '99 Civic with a manual transmission to drive back and forth to work. I will be making no modifications to the car I buy and I though I'm only 30, I drive like an old man (at least with $4/gal gas). I am having a little trouble finding many cars that meet that criteria. I would like to know, what is everyone's opinion of the auto trannys that were put in these cars? I usually buy cars with manuals because I like the reliability, ease of maint. and feel of a manual. I like to do all of my own work on my cars whenever possible. So, am I just being paranoid or should I hold out for the manual?

Also, I have been looking on Craigslist, Auto Trader, Tradin'Post, Cars.com, and the local news paper classifieds online. Does anyone have any other recommended sites?

Thanks!