sabenaboy,
I agree with most everything you've written here. I'm not nearly as experienced as many of the posters here, but I shudder to think of how some would react to the clearance I was given last night...
Abeam the field, 5-6000ft, cleared for the visual approach. AP off, FD off (no AT) and turn for the airport. Did some of that stuff my PPL instructor taught me and eventually found the runway. It would even have been a greaser if the runway had been about 6 inches closer to sea level, but I digress...
Fortunately, at my outfit, we don't have any
major restrictions concerning hand flying.