dear Civic has a variable speed orignal compressor. it doest trip and turn on or off. it works at variable speeds in association with climate control.
if your ac is turning on and off than it means its orignal compressor has been changed and some alteration has been done to air conditioning system that is why u r feeling load with AC compressor.
if the cooling is ok, drive it for now. next time it goes bad, switch to orignal configuration and orginal fitting.