I feel the same as you do about white, Scarlet. A couple years ago I grew several white dahlias for a wedding. They do brighten up the garden, but bugs are always attracted to them, and they do sometimes look dirty. I liked 2 of them enough to keep them in my garden (Blizzard and Korb River Bend Jean), but purchased ZERO whites this year. I try harder to find yellows I might like, but a lot of it has to do with form, if it's a stellar or laciniated I am more likely to give it a whirl.
I'm already trying to figure out when I'm going to plant- Mother's Day is early this year. I don't enlist my boyfriend's help to plant, but he would if I asked. A few years ago he posted some pics on FB of his dahlias (my extra tubers, all labeled and individually packaged by yours truly), and half of their names were wrong on the pics. He said he moved some things around and forgot to update his garden layout. If that happens in my garden, I want to be sure the only person to blame is me.
Shawn, I think Scarlet's "Encore" is up your alley! 70s already, woohoo!! Understandable that you would like to get growing before it gets too hot.
Nice scouting, too, Scarlet! I will probably swing by Lowe's and Menards today, so will have to check and see if any dahlias have magically appeared. Once Menards moves the seeds out of the store (last week) and into the garden center, the tubers and other bulbs usually appear shortly thereafter.