A couple weeks ago, we spent an entire Saturday filming a video at my apartment for Instagram’s new “Photos of You” feature. Chris Kalani (my roommate) and I named our apartment “The Keeglani Castle in The Sky,” because we have a huge patio with a beautiful view of San Francisco — a perfect location for the shoot. The Facebook video team (Nate, Matt, & Alejandro) did a fantastic job producing the final piece.

A funny story: The final scene is me standing on the roof access structure of the building next door. Moneal took this photo, and then asked me to “sit down and hang my legs off the edge” for one more photo. As I was sat down, the neighbor who lives below us, opened the roof access door, and I kicked her in the back of the head. Whoops! It was unfortunate and impeccable timing.

Read about the “Photos of You” feature on the Instagram blog.

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Friday is my last day at Facebook. It’s truly been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with such high-caliber people on a product used by a community of 1 billion. Since being at Facebook, I have learned a ton about mobile and product design. So much, in fact, that I’m going to print myself a PhD in design. (I never went to college.) Facebook is a special place, and I’m going to miss it. I have no doubt the future is bright, and the best days for the company are ahead. The past sixteen months have been amazing, and I am forever grateful for the experience.

Zuck and I on the day Facebook celebrated 1 billion users.

So, why am I leaving? Because sometimes you get the itch to create something new, and when that itch becomes too great, it requires action. While designing at Gowalla for 4 years (before being acquired by Facebook), I enjoyed the process of building the service from scratch. I want to continue making beautiful, high-quality products that people love, no matter the scale.

After being raised in the midwest, living in San Francisco has been quite an adjustment. But I have grown to like the city, and I plan to stay. Living here has forced me to be ambitious, because *everyone* is doing something interesting. I appreciate the openness surrounding new ideas and the chance to collaborate with the most talented people in the industry.

Before diving into new projects, I am taking time off. For the last decade, I’ve been designing full-time. (I started at age 15 and am now 25.) Sometimes a person needs a break to gain new perspective — even if they’re perfectly happy (and I am). For years I have dreamed about traveling around the world — and now is the time! A big part of life is about the places you go and people you meet. I plan to spend time reading, exploring, ramping up on new skills (like iOS engineering), taking lots of photos…and most of all, meeting great folks!

My first stop is Reykjavik, Iceland. I have never been and don’t know a single soul — but, it looks beautiful. So, any recommendations are welcome! I have a one-way flight and will plan more destinations as I go. In each destination, I will host an Instagram meet-up to connect with new people. I have a huge stack of Instagram stickers — directly from the team in California, to give away. Follow me on Twitter for updates.

Thanks for all the love and support. <3