Sorry to hear about your loss, that was some story.
I vote for the 6 spd. also.
I seldom get less than 25 mpg combined driving, and between 28 and 30 mpg highway. I can't ask anymore than that from a high performance "sports car".
We have the cedar/slate interior and love it. As a matter of fact, that was the one thing we insisted on (besides the 6 spd.) before we bought it.
Have you thought about a roadster? They have a little more head room. I'm 6' 2" and I wouldn't want to be much taller in a coupe.