Meet Nathan Veld: Patient care worker, cement creator, carpenter and painter

The ideal job for most workers on P.E.I. is a full-time one in their field of study.

For five years, Nathan Veld from Orwell, P.E.I., was living the full-time employee dream as a patient care worker, but gave it up this year to go back to casual work and pursue the "slasher" lifestyle.

"I like to be doing something or continuing changing or I don't want to get bored doing one thing, so it's nice," says the 32-year-old.

Concrete is kind of an endless thing that you can continue to build on and make new things.— Nathan Veld

"And even being the casual worker at Health PEI at different facilities — you're switching around and it's not the same thing over and over."

Veld is now spending his extra time developing his cement business called Cementheadz Concrete Artisans. He started it three years ago with one of his friends, but now operates it alone.

"I'd like to continue to develop the concrete services, which is forever expanding between countertops or furniture or coffee tables or flower plants or jewellery now," said Veld.

"Concrete is kind of an endless thing that you can continue to build on and make new things."

Finding balance 

Veld went to Holland College to study in the fields of corrections and then in patient care.

From there, Veld said it wasn't hard to find a full-time job and he kept with it for five years.

The decision to move back to casual work was pretty easy, he said because it would mean more flexible hours to pursue his other jobs — when he's not pouring concrete or working at the hospital, he's doing carpentry or painting.

But more flexibility doesn't mean fewer hours of work — he sometimes works more than 70 hours per week, said Veld.

"I don't try to strain myself too much, but some weeks I could be working four nights and you know I'd sleep for four hours, get up, work for five hours and go back to bed for three hours and go back and do a night shift."

Veld said part of the reason he doesn't mind working long hours is because each of his jobs is so different.

"They're very different because the concrete is a very independent thing where I work on my own and it's quiet, while patient care is —I'm forever dealing with people and families. So it's a very social, personable situation.

"So they are quite different and maybe that's why I like doing both, because it lets me spread myself out."

The patient care job takes priority over the others because it is still his main gig, he said, but that's something he'd like to change.

Making the side hustle full time

Veld's dream is to be able to pursue his cement business full time, but he feels it's hard to take that leap of faith.

"It's right at that transition stage. You know, if you invest in this, is it going to be prosperous still," Veld said.

Patient care work is a good-paying job and Veld said it's hard to give up that stability.

Right now he's developing the online presence of Cementheadz by launching a social media campaign. 

He's also searching through Pinterest for ideas for different cement products, since the market for concrete countertops is very niche.

"I've used Pinterest for lots of ideas, whether it be in the kitchen for food or just ideas for building things ... it's a great little platform, get great ideas from."

Veld said he hopes that because the P.E.I. market for developing cement products is small, it will bode well for his expanding venture — until then, he says he'll continue to be a slash worker.

"It's a fine line and it's something that I'm going to have to battle with here shortly, but for the meantime I enjoy doing both of them and we'll see where it goes."

More P.E.I. news