I feel like I'm missing out on the fun of co-op

So after finishing the single player of Splinter Cell Conviction, I really wanted to get in and do the co-op but had no one to play with. I did a couple of the missions with random online partners, and that was ok, but not nearly as fun as playing with someone I knew. 
 
Now that I'm no longer in college, working a fulltime job and dealing with all that annoying adult stuff, I don't really have anyone to game with. I sort of fell out of gaming for awhile before getting back into it in the last 2 years - what this boils down to is that I don't have really any serious gamer friends. I mean, some of my friends have consoles, but they tend to be the types who use them for the yearly release of Madden and a couple other games here or there. 
 
So, how can I find people to game with?

This is what Giant Bomb is for.  Find a few people on the site you can tolerate, exchange online handles, and play.  It's better to play with random people on a forum you post on then just random people in general.
 
 
...Or you could go all-out creeper and hang out in a Gamestop, follow someone home, yadda yadda yadda...

Dude, sorry to hear that, but if you think you have it bad, try being the age where you could game a lot, but still having no serious gamer friends. All my friends are just the kind like you said, who buy Madden every year, and I don't even have a real full-time job yet. It sucks...

I'll play with ya, buddy
 
But I'm warning you, I use the shotgun. Exclusively.