I think I have this starting from first/reverse thing mostly down. I even backed out of my driveway with the clutch fully engaged today!
Once you get a feel for the sound of the engine it's pretty easy to judge by that how much to apply to each pedal to get rolling. When I was trying to do it solely by looking at rpms, it was usually epic failure time.
I drove it through several fancy neighborhoods... stopping and starting from 1st to get the hang of it. Then I took it on the interstate and made my M-F drive to work. I drove around in the work parking lot (hills, speed bumps galore, etc.), parked, and got myself outta there.
I then took River Road (a really long road that parallels the Mississippi River) back home as I avoid the interstate after work.
I'm much more comfortable in the car now. This was all done with very little traffic, however. I might head in to work early tomorrow to avoid traffic or take it out later today when the traffic kicks up a bit.
I'm right at home going through the gears. I blame Gran Turismo, Forza Motorsport, and Enthusia. If you are planning on picking up a manual, try one in a racing simulation video game for a while. You'll quickly learn at least the basic principles of how the tachometer, engine sound, and speedometer match up. You won't learn to actually shift with a clutch (unless you get one of those REALLY expensive Logitech wheels), but you'll learn how to utilize gears. Of course, you won't be WOT and shifting at the redline in real life (at least I hope not).