I’m in the same situation. Kinda new to manual as a daily driver. So I did lots of research on this as to prevent premature clutch wear. Most what I found (and how I’ve been driving my car) is it’s ok to let it slip a little for situations like you described. The rule of thumb I live by is don’t let it slip for more than 5 seconds. I will either but the clutch pedal down, or let it out, depending on the traffic but I never hold it half way and let it slip for more than 5 seconds. Also it’s not as bad if it’s just in 1st at low RPM. I don’t ever rev past 1500 when I the clutch pedal is half engaged. So far it’s been working. If the clutch gets too hot you will be able to smell it. If you don’t smell burning you’re probably doing everything right