[glouch]

the nocrit server would be awesome if:
a) it was full or at least had some players on it all the time
b) the players aren't noobs

I don't know much about competitive tf2, but I guess you could always try some pugs to see if you like it.

Adder's idea is also good.

And although arena is not everyone's thing, I find it quite fun. At first I hated it with a passion, but now I play it quite a bit. You could always give it another try.