inception

Hi...wow. I just read Karen Kelsky's post. I'm speechless. That is definitely something I'll consider, thank you for bringing it to my attention. 
I can better imagine myself in Hawaii, you're right...but it's not that I could never make a home in Cornell. I am perfectly willing to, at least if it's only for two years. I will definitely have to get used to the cold and winter if I end up at Cornell. 
I think I'll ultimately wait to see if I get funding from Cornell. I won't take an unfunded offer.
Thank you so much for the advice!

@JennyGoat Sorry for the late reply! Thank you! I'm still pretty surprised about it. Michigan is a great school, though, especially for Asian studies -- congrats and good luck!
You're right, there aren't any TAships available for masters students. I'm still hoping for FLAS though, especially if the college will fund the rest of the tuition. 
I'm not discouraged by the fact that I wouldn't be able to go straight to a PhD though, since I'm interested in going into an anthropology PhD program. But your point about relocation and weather are definitely things I need to consider. 
I also found out that I got a fellowship and FLAS from Wisconsin, so I need to consider them too...
Anyway, I'll definitely PM you tomorrow! Thanks for the advice.

Hi — has anyone heard from Cornell's Asian studies MA? I was hoping they'd come out today, but I guess not.
Congrats @jeangabin!

I can't overstate enough the incessant feeling of dread and despondence that had been following me like a dark cloud during this waiting process. After getting a first rejection and an implied rejection (from a top pick), on the same day, I resigned myself to knowing I'd be unanimously rejected this cycle. If a top match rejected me, I didn't stand a chance elsewhere. Since that day, I'd been unreasonably depressed and moody. It was still January, but I just wanted to get it all over with, and felt irritated that other impending rejections weren't arriving yet. On top of this, my job had been beating me down all month. I work at a non-profit for a cause I'm very passionate about, which means I am burdened with compassion fatigue. It's been a lot.
Spoiler alert: my top choice (which you can see in my signature I'll be attending, despite other decisions still pending) is UNC. I absolutely did not feel confident about the match but wanted to get in so bad. I'd looked at the admissions stats, etc. and knew I had no chance.
Monday, January 28 is the day I got the decision. I'm off work Sunday-Monday, and I'm in school full-time for my master's right now, too, so my days off are my days on for writing my thesis. I'll do 12 hour days writing non-stop. (Side note, maybe this is why I am so burned out and anxious, hmm)
I'd woken up like any normal Monday, started coffee, gotten my laptop ready, stuck a bagel in the toaster. Strangely, I remember that despite how I'd been feeling so down about likely rejections, at this point, as of this morning, I had kinda moved on? Like, I'd made peace with rejection. I think this is a coping strategy I subconsciously employed. Maybe this is one of those "stages of grief?" I felt strangely calm and had renewed focus on my thesis project. If I wasn't getting accepted to a PhD program, I had to at least make sure to have a kick-ass thesis paper--"this is still an achievable goal," I thought.
As I'm settling in to write all day, I checked my email on my phone to find this subject: "UNC Anthropology Decision."
All that BS I just said, about my mental state, where I'd "moved on" and "made peace?" Yeah, that all immediately evacuated my body. I cared a LOT, actually. My heart dropped, it was such a neutral subject line, the body of the email said nothing, just "Please find your attached decision letter regarding your application."
I took a breath and opened the attachment. "It is with great pleasure that I write to confirm..."
I think maybe that's when I started sobbing? Who is to say, but at some point, I was HEAVING with sobs, I went and hugged my dogs and thanked them each individually (I have three who are the lights of my life), I then called my boyfriend who was at work and answered--I scared the hell out of him (I never cry and I called him sobbing). Before I told my friends and immediate family (I actually only told like 5 people I was applying to PhDs at all, lest I be rejected everywhere and embarrassed) I read the letter 15 times to make sure it was real. I also (after reading horror stories on this forum) confirmed it was indeed my name on the letter.
I didn't get much done on my thesis that day, my brain was buzzing. I also was so sure that the decision would be revoked or something that I refreshed my email constantly. Once 12 hours had gone by, I thought maybe I was safe. But really, it wasn't until I got additional emails from the department that I fully realized I had actually been accepted (and not by mistake).

I was sitting in my lab, working on something in R for a project we are presenting at WPA in April. I had my email open as well, it pinged and I switched over and saw an informal offer and congratulations from my POI at my second choice school. My current undergraduate professor and my lab group use #slack to message each other, and I sent my mentor a message in all caps, "ARE YOU UPSTAIRS?!" because her office is one floor above our lab. She messaged me back and said she was, and I ran upstairs. I peeked around the corner into her office and whispered "I got into Nebraska" and she yelled and ran and gave me a big hug and started tearing up. I'm her first student to get into a PhD program. This was definitely a moment I will remember forever. ❤️ 

I would say that it might be way too early to contact a POI especially since you are starting an MA soon. I think it's great that you are already thinking about a PhD, but I would imagine that right now professors are focusing on the current application season and trying to get people in the program and all that stuff. By August/September, they're probably thinking about the next cohort or on getting incoming students set up. They will not think about your specific situation until probably October 2020. That's a lot of time for them to completely forget about the conversation they could have with you before you leave. If you are trying to get on their radar for when you apply it doesn't seem like the best choice.  I think it would make more sense to talk to your POI later.
Also I would think that it would be better to focus on having a good relationship with the faculty in the MA program you will be attending. However, if you think that the POI might offer valuable advice/ an interesting perspective for your MA and the research you will be carrying out then that would be different.  But also if I were a professor, I would be wondering that if you were so interested in them why didn't you apply directly to that school and do the PhD since you are already thinking about it? Like what is the point of doing the MA? I don't know if that makes sense, I just think you might be getting a bit ahead of yourself.
I hope this helps and best of luck!

I would think a more general note about wanting to meet to discuss research and the field would be fine, Likely he/she will say no if unavailable. If it's a yes, then the PHD question will likely come up naturally while meeting.