Editing this to more accurately describe issue:
After reinstall, working with multiple clips on an audio track was not showing the typical tool for doing auto crossfades as clips were overlapped. Instead the tools were more like those that would be used when in comping mode ( even though I was not).
Later found: although "Blend Old With New" was checked, "auto crossfade" under options was not. Left unchecked, it seemed like the program was stuck somewhere between typical audio track tools and comping tools.
Leaving this for others if they miss this on re-install: If your standard editing tools seem "off" after a fresh install, and you feel like you're stuck in a weird hybrid of standard audio editing tools and comping tools, this might be your issue.
All is functioning fine now.