you addressed the two things I want to ask you about.

Yes manual focusing is useful especially when hyperfocal is desired. But it can be challenging in dim situations. That's why I ask what kind of camera you use. Not all viewfinders are the same. Judging from your photos, I figure autofocus would work better if you know how/are used to using it.

As for the focus point, of the 10 something points, most often only the center one is a cross-type. (not sure what 35mm you shoot, maybe a Canon. For Nikon, F5, F100, D1, D2 series have 3 cross-type sensors laid out horizontally. D200/D100/D70 series have one, in the center). The side ones are cr*p basically for spot focus because they only recognize one pattern, either horizontal or vertical, while the cross-type can detect both. Anyway just use the cross-type sensor, autofocus and recompose, it's much faster, and accurate. My 2 cents.