I want to play

It could be many factors from your ISP, a bad modem or router, the Xbox 360 having a strict nat setting and so much more I imagine. I personally think it could be your 360. Try doing a XBL connection test and see if that helps the connection issues. If not,
it's probably your ISP.

There are only two ways you can play other region game discs.

*

One-the game is region free.

Two-you have a console from that region if it is different from your own region. (example: yours is NTSC and the game disc id PAL)

*

Otherwise as stated above, no.

I did the moshpit leauge for the 'cheevo, and i always had a like-minded team playing with me. Only lost one of those matches, and that was during the qualifying. I'm sure you'll have a decent team almost every match.

You can check the status of your live membership at this link https://account.microsoft.com/services

Please be aware that it can take a little time for it to properly populate your account. Also, a trial membership (ie. 48 hours, 1 week, etc) are not full memberships and don't give access to all features. They are usually limited to the game they came
with.

Sounds like a problem at your end.

Have you tried the troubleshooting guide here ?
support.xbox.com/.../connectivity-solutions